


Quarantine, Baby!

by Aerstes



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: "oh my god they were quarantined", (cardi b voice) coronavirus! coronavirus! shit is getting real!, Eventual Smut, F/F, FWB, Fluff, Friends With Benefits, Friends to Lovers, Honestly why be a fic writer if not to make au's out of such wild times, Lena Luthor Knows Kara Danvers Is Supergirl, No Angst, Seriously this fic is all fluff, SuperCorp, Supercorp endgame, bed sharing, but there's no angst cuz ain't nobody got time for that in this fluffy ass story, pretend none of season 5 is happening in this, quarantine au, shameless flirting, temporary roommates, two friends living in the same apartment during quarantine cuz theyre not gay
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:54:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 60,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23219590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aerstes/pseuds/Aerstes
Summary: Kara wants to find a way to encourage the citizens of National City to STAY THE FUCK HOME, so she concocts the totally innocent plan of bunking with Lena at her apartment during her isolation period and live streaming their time together on the CatCo website to encourage self isolating. As long as Kara doesn't accidentally reveal herself as Supergirl, and as long as these 'best friends' can keep their hands to themselves while the cameras are rolling, nothing can possibly go wrong with this idea! Right??Read fic. Make art. Stay home and safe in these challenging times, friends. <3NOTE: I am NOT an expert on any of what's happening. Things may happen in this story that don't match with what every person in every country is experiencing. Do not take any of the do's and don't of quarantines occurring in this story as fact, seeing as the situation changes every day and what I'm writing about today might be completely invalid tomorrow. PLEASE do the research for yourself as to what you should be doing where you live to stay safe and flatten the curve of infection!
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Comments: 1309
Kudos: 2778





	1. Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara wants to find a way to encourage the citizens of National City to STAY THE FUCK HOME, so she concocts the totally innocent plan of bunking with Lena at her apartment during her isolation period and live streaming their time together on the CatCo website to encourage self isolating. As long as Kara doesn't accidentally reveal herself as Supergirl, and as long as these 'best friends' can keep their hands to themselves while the cameras are rolling, nothing can possibly go wrong with this idea! Right??
> 
> Read fic. Make art. Stay home and safe in these challenging times, friends. <3
> 
> NOTE: I am NOT an expert on any of what's happening. Things may happen in this story that don't match with what every person in every country is experiencing. Do not take any of the do's and don't of quarantines occurring in this story as fact, seeing as the situation changes every day and what I'm writing about today might be completely invalid tomorrow. PLEASE do the research for yourself as to what you should be doing where you live to stay safe and flatten the curve of infection!

Kara had a habit of not taking crises seriously. Not only because there was literally always a crisis. Like on an almost weekly basis for about eight months out of the year, strangely enough. But also because her superpowers kept her from feeling the need to be nervous, since she was so much less at risk than everyone else due to her powers and near invulnerability. So, admittedly, Kara had been a little blase about the whole pandemic thing when it first started popping up on the news. Even when there was a debrief at the DEO about changes in priorities and funding within the government to handle the upcoming crisis, she had made a couple of off handed comments, asking if it were really  _ that _ big of a deal.

And then she blinked, and everyone was out hoarding toilet paper and eggs like a bunch of psychos, and she realized that she had spoken too soon. But all that accepting the gravity of the situation did was make her feel restless. What could Supergirl possibly do to help? It was a question she wasn’t used to asking. She almost always had an answer to that, and it almost always involved punching. But she couldn’t beat up an invisible pathogen, now could she? 

It wasn’t until Lena made a public announcement that she would be shutting down LCorp, giving all of her employees a paid leave of absence, and self isolating for at least two weeks, that she had an idea.

“People listen to Supergirl, right?” Kara asked, tapping her thumb against her chin as she thought. Oh wait, she wasn’t supposed to touch her face. No, wait, it didn’t matter, she was Supergirl.

“For the most part, yeah, depending on the public opinion of you at the time,” Alex replied.

“Hmm,” Kara mused. 

The two sisters were sitting around at the DEO, mainly out of a need to maintain a sense of normalcy, even though the building was almost entirely vacant. Alex sat in one of the swivel chairs in front of the control board, Kara sitting across from her on the control board itself even though J’onn had told her not to like a million times…

“So do you think they’d listen and stay the heck home if I told them to?” Kara asked after thinking for a moment.

“I mean, literally everyone with half a brain is telling people to stay home. But no one will listen. Not even you,” Alex retorted.

“Wha-hey! I’ve been staying home more than  _ usual _ .” 

“Kara, you’ve been to the grocery store three times in the past two days.”

“I’m really bad at making shopping lists!” Kara insisted, and then sighed in concession. “But you’re right. I can’t just tell people to do something if I’m not even doing it myself...Okay, I know what to do.” 

“What’s that?” Alex asked, spinning around idly in her chair, bored out of her mind.

“I’m gonna do what Lena did. Make a public show of self isolating. If people see Supergirl, someone invulnerable to sickness, making a point to stay home, maybe they’ll finally take all of this seriously. It’s worth a shot at least.” 

Alex gripped the console to stop her chair spinning long enough to look Kara in the eye, stumbling slightly becuase she had made herself a bit dizzy. 

“And what if the city needs you?” Alex asked. “What if people start looting or some other dumb shit? Hell, what if they start looting just  _ because _ they know Supergirl won’t be there to stop them?” 

“Huh,” Kara replied, thinking. “Okay, maybe you have a point. Maybe Supergirl needs to stay visible in the public when the situation demands it. Kara, however…she’s a different story.”

Alex looked doubtful. 

“You really think a CatCo reporter announcing she’s staying home will change anyone’s mind?” 

“Well, probably not, no,” Kara admitted. “But! Maybe if publicly teamed up in her efforts with someone more prominent like...I dunno, Lena Luthor?” 

Alex narrowed her eyes at her sister.

“Are you just trying to find an excuse to get yourself quarantined with Lena?” 

“What?” Kara asked innocently. “No!” 

“Kara,” Alex pressed suspiciously. 

“Fine, okay? I need a quarantine buddy! You already paired up with Kelly, and I am not about to third wheel  _ that _ love fest.” 

Alex shrugged, knowing that Kara wasn’t wrong in assuming that she was planning on spending most of the time in isolation ravishing her girlfriend...

“And what exactly are you and Lena gonna do stuck in an apartment together for all that time, hmm?” Alex asked, her voice pitching up oddly on the last word. 

“Arts and crafts,” Kara said bluntly. 

Alex’s burst of laughter was so loud and sudden that Kara jumped in response to it. 

“Seriously?” 

“Yes!” Kara insisted defensively. “Why is that so weird?” 

“Kara…” Alex said in that tone knowing, very aggravating tone. “I just think that you might have another reason to be so  _ eager _ to get yourself locked in with Lena indefinitely.” 

Rather than let Alex continue that train of thought that Kara had a feeling she didn’t want to hear, she made quick work of making a call on her cell phone.

“Can’t talk, gotta pitch an idea to my editor!” 

*

Kara knocked on Lena’s apartment door eagerly, in part because she was anxious to tell her about her idea and in part because she hadn’t seen Lena in two whole days and that was just unacceptable, pandemic or not. 

Kara snuck a peek at Lena through the door before Lena opened it, which was not weird at all. She saw Lena look through the peephole, saw her eyes go wide, heard her heartbeat quicken just slightly, and saw her fix her hair and smooth out her outfit a bit before finally opening the door. 

“Kara!” Lena said, as if she had no idea that she was the one knocking. “What are you doing here?” 

“Making sure you aren’t getting cabin fever?” Kara offered jokingly, and held up the bottle in her right hand. “And look, I have wine!” 

Lena’s shoulders slumped in relief. 

“Thank god for you, Kara Danvers,” Lena said, and opened the door, ushering Kara in.

Kara laughed. 

“Already feeling the pinch of the liquor stores being closed?” she asked.

“What? No. I have a wine cellar built into the floor, remember?” Lena said, gesturing to the patch of the kitchen tile that was a slightly brighter white compared to the rest of the floor. “I’m good for a while. I meant thank god you came by,” she said, talking as she walked into the kitchen and grabbed a couple of wine glasses and a corkscrew. “Becuase I missed you.” 

“Oh,” Kara said, trying to ignore the heat creeping onto her cheeks in response to Lena’s words. “I thought you might not answer the door. You were pretty adamant about limiting contact with people.” 

“Well, technically, I said I’m limiting contact with other  _ humans _ . You, my dear, and your alien DNA, being unable to contract or spread the virus, do not count. So,” she said as she poured Kara a glass of wine, a smile forming on her lip. “Cheers.” 

Kara brought the glass to her lips, soaking up the sight of her friend. She didn’t see this version of Lena enough. The one in sweatpants and a T-shirt instead of designer dresses and carefully tailored suits. The one with her hair down in their natural loose curls instead of pulled into submission in a tight bun or singed into uniformity with a flat iron. 

“What?” Lena asked as she poured herself a glass. 

“Hmm?” Kara replied, pulled out of her trance.

“You’re staring.” 

“Am I?” she asked, even though she knew she absolutely was. 

“Mmhmm,” Lena replied, with that glint in her eye that always promised something more if Kara would just make the first move.

“Well I,” Kara said, shaking her head to rid herself of the intrusive and not-so-innocent thoughts threatening to take over. “I actually wanted to pitch an idea to you.” 

“Oh yeah? Well then, pitch away,” Lena said. 

“Okay,” exhaling slowly to get past her nervousness. Why was she so nervous? “So! You made a big point to announce that you and all your employees were self isolating to encourage people to stop being…”

“Assholes?” Lena suggested. 

Kara squirmed uncomfortably in response. 

“I mean, you’re not wrong, but…” she struggled.

“I know. You won’t say it. But I will.” 

“Anyway,” Kara tried to deflect. “Since people are having a...hard time adjusting, I thought we could try and help get people into the spirit of staying home by giving them a good example.” 

Lena frowned, perplexed.

“Well what more do you want from me, Kara? I’m already staying home, trying to live off of what I have in the apartment so neither me or my assistant have to go to the store.” 

“I know you are. And it’s admirable. But saying you’re self isolating and showing that you’re self isolating are two very different things. So…”

“Oh no…” Lena bemoaned.

“I thought that-”

“Kara I don’t like where this is going…”

“That we could do a live stream from your apartment on the CatCo website!” 

“Fuck,” Lena muttered, apparently hoping that if she had voiced her objections faster than Kara could make her suggestion that Kara wouldn’t go through with it. But they both knew that would never happen. “And let me guess…” 

“I already pitched it and my editor loved it. Mostly because no one ever gets more than a quick snapshot of you from your way from LCorp to your car.” 

“Yeah and there’s a very good reason for that,” Lena lamented. “So, what? You want me to just sit here in my apartment, by myself, with a camera on me so all the world can see me doing paperwork all day? Not exactly captivating content.” 

“No, of course not. I’ll be here with you! And we’ll be doing fun stuff like...following along with art tutorials and trying new recipes and live Q&A with viewers.” 

Lena arched an eyebrow at Kara, barely able to believe what she was hearing. 

“You want to be stuck in my apartment with me for the next two weeks?” 

Kara rolled her lips together in a hopeful if not slightly self conscious smile. 

“Yes,” she replied. 

“And you want to broadcast this to the world?” Lena pressed. 

“More or less, yes.”

“Kara,” Lena sighed, “I’m not the...sharing my personal life type of person. And neither are you! What happens if someone needs Supergirl in the middle of a stream? Gonna whip the suit out in front of live viewers?” 

Kara put her hands on her hips, in a stance that was a bit ironic considering Lena’s question. 

“No,” Kara said. “We’ll only be streaming briefly during scheduled time frames. And if Supergirl related stuff comes up while we’re streaming we can just wrap it up early.” 

Lena still looked unconvinced. 

“Come on, Lena,” Kara said in the tone of voice that usually got Lena to change her mind. “It’ll be fun. People need things that are fun and light hearted to break up the panic and the isolation right now. Don’t we owe it to people to use our platforms to give them just that?” 

Lena frowned, but her eyes already gave away her crumbling resolve. 

“Ugh,  _ fine _ ,” Lena groaned, and Kara squealed excitedly in response. “But for the record, I don’t think this is a good idea.” 

“It’s a  _ great _ idea,” Kara reassured. “What could possibly go wrong?” 

*

“Oh-kay!” Kara beamed excitedly to the camera of her laptop. “Hi there, viewers! And welcome to this CatCo sponsored stream, coming to you live from…” Kara made an attempt at a drumroll by slapping the kitchen counter rapidly. “Lena Luthor’s apartment!” 

Kara shifted the computer slightly to the left to reveal Lena frowning as she entered the kitchen and leaned against the counter behind Kara. Kara looked at her through the mirrored screen of the laptop and shook her head.

“Lena, what are you wearing?” 

Lena crossed her arms. 

“What are you talking about?” she asked, looking down at her outfit and then back to Kara.

“You’re wearing a pantsuit.”

“Yes? And?” Lena asked.

“Lena, we’re in your home. I thought you’d wear something more  _ comfortable _ .” 

“How do you know I’m not perfectly comfortable the way I am?” 

Kara shook her head exasperatedly, glancing down briefly at the corner of the screen to see that they already had a couple hundred viewers. 

“Fine. We will just make cookies in pantsuits,” Kara said with a lighthearted laugh. “Okay. So this is day three of Lena’s self isolation period. And day two of mine. How we feelin so far, Lena?” 

“I’m feeling,” Lena said as she made what seemed like a conflicted decision to come and sit on the barstool next to Kara. “Like I’m happy to do the bare minimum to protect those around me with more compromised immune systems. And anyone who doesn’t agree is-” 

“Okay!” Kara said with a forced laugh. This was going to be a little more tricky than she had anticipated. “Thank you for bringing up that point. Yes, to everyone out there watching, it is very important to stay home for the time being, even if you don’t feel sick. We’re all in this together, friends. And speaking of friends, the reason we are doing this stream together is becuase Lena is my best friend in the  _ whole _ world,” Kara said, turning to look at Lena long enough to see a blush forming on her cheeks. “And there is no one I would rather be stuck with in isolation with for a couple weeks.” 

“Just don’t use up all my toilet paper,” Lena quipped, seeming to find it hard to maintain eye contact with Kara for long.

“Hey! We got her to make a joke! Good job, guys! Now, onto making cookies!” 

Kara fumbled with the computer for a moment as she resituated it to face the pile of baking supplies she had set up in the middle of the kitchen island. 

“So, I posted the recipe we’re gonna be following on the CatCo website earlier in case any of you want to bake along with us. Or just look at it later.” 

“Or don’t if you can’t find any eggs anywhere in the city, either,” Lena added, voice monotone despite a cracking smile on her mouth. 

“Listen,” Kara quipped, holding out the recipe card to the camera. “This recipe only needs one egg! One! How’s  _ that _ for rationing?!” 

Lena chuckled. 

“Okay. What are we making then?” 

“I am glad you asked, Lena! So over the holidays, my sister’s girlfriend Kelly made the mistake of making these things she called cloud cookies for the cookie exchange. I say ‘mistake’ because I have guilted her into making them at least half a dozen times since because they are  _ so _ good.” 

“Oh my god, we’re making Kelly’s cloud cookies?” Lena asked, suddenly more excited to participate in the live stream than she had been since Kara talked her into it. 

“Yup,” Kara said with a knowing smile.

* 

“Oh my god, these are so sticky,” Lena said as she tried desperately to scrape the gunk off of her fingers as Kara popped the cookies in the oven. 

“Yeah, now I know why Kelly gets so annoyed when I ask her to make them,” Kara replied, glancing over at the computer. They had at least a couple thousand viewers, which made Kara smile. If people were at home watching their live stream, they weren’t out spreading their germs. Her plan was working. 

“Ack,” Lena exclaimed as she looked down at her clothes, “I got some of it on me.” 

“And that is why we don’t wear designer clothes while making cookies!” Kara said with a laugh. 

She noticed that on the right side of her screen people who were leaving comments as they watched. Though, ironically enough, her glasses made it harder for her to see the screen from where she was standing a couple feet away, and besides that, there was something more pressing drawing her attention…

Lena, who had wiped the rest of the cookie batter off her hands and clothes with a towel, had apparently noticed a glob of the batter caked to Kara’s bangs. She reached out, taking a lock of Kara’s hair between her pointer and middle finger, gently removing the batter while tucking Kara’s hair behind her ear. 

Kara found herself unable to move, frozen in response to just the simplest of gestures from her best friend. It wasn’t the first time. It seemed like more and more often she found her brain short circuiting because of Lena. It didn’t take much. A laugh, a smile, a lingering stare, a touch... 

But now was not the time to address that. Not with a few thousand live viewers watching their every move. Maybe Lena was right. Maybe this wasn’t the best idea. 

“So, uh,” Kara said, all but jumping away from Lena’s hand as she focused her attention back on the computer. “I don’t think we need to keep this stream going long enough to see the finished results. I’ll make sure to post pictures on the website later. But before we go, my editor wanted you to answer a couple of quick questions from the viewers, Lena, if you’re up for that?” 

“If I must,” Lena replied, with that quirk of her eyebrows and with that suggestive tone that did things to Kara she didn’t want to admit to. 

“Cool! So,” Kara said, sitting back down at the kitchen table and patting the chair next to her so they could both be in the frame of the laptop’s camera. “Let’s see here, umm…” Kara said, trying to read the comments as they came pouring in on the right of the screen, wiggling her glasses as she tried to pick one out to read. “Oh! Here’s a good one. How do you focus on your work when you are away from your office and your normal routine?” 

“Huh. That’s actually a great question,” Lena said, in that practiced professional tone she had all but mastered when she was being interviewed. “To be honest, it’s easy to get a little distracted here and there. Especially if your best friend decides to turn your time at home into a group activity.” 

“Hey!” Kara said, surprised at Lena’s sudden shift from her usual business tone to a light teasing one. 

“The point is,” Lena said with a chuckle. “Don’t beat yourself up if you can’t keep your focus all the time. This is a completely abnormal and unusual time to be enduring, and it’s more than okay if you find yourself not fully able to adapt. At the end of the day, humans aren’t meant to be cooped up by themselves for long periods of time. But for now we must, for the good of everyone.” 

“You’re not alone, though, Lena,” Kara insisted. 

Lena shook her head, a small smile on her lips. 

“I know that, Kara.”

The air between them suddenly felt tense, the lack of distance between them as they sat hunched over the computer screen palpable.

“Okay,” Kara said, clearing her throat. “Next question, Lena. Do you really wear pantsuits when you’re at home? No!” Kara answered for her. “She does not! She wears sweatpants and takes her makeup off and wears her hair down and it’s adorable! Not that she will ever let you guys see that, becuase _heaven_ _forbid_.”

“Alright. I get it,” Lena said with a shake of her head. “No more dressing up for the live stream.” 

Kara chuckled, completely enamored by the way Lena was smiling at her, a small blush on her cheeks. Then she remembered what they were supposed to be doing. 

“Right. Last question,” Kara said, looking for one more question that stood out amongst the incoming flow of them in the comments. It was hard to read them fast enough before the next ones came pouring in, so she just read the first one that popped out to her. “So are you and Kara,” she read, unthinking, “Like...friends or  _ friends _ ?”

Lena scrunched her nose at the question. 

“I don’t get it,” she said. 

“Me either,” Kara replied cluelessly. “I thought we already went over this. Me and Lena are best friends. Why else would we choose to spend all this time cooped up together, right?” 

*

“Well, that wasn’t quite as painful as I thought it would be,” Lena said as she nibbled at a slightly burnt cookie. “Ugh, why are they so much better when Kelly makes them?” 

“Food always tastes better when you don't have to make it,” Kara said. “Also she never burns them. But see! I told you this livestream was a good idea. We got a lot of viewers! And there’s already people posting pictures of their own attempt at the recipe we posted. This is a good thing!” 

“Alright, maybe you’re right. So what time is the next stream?” 

“Uh,” Kara said, looking at the schedule she had compiled on her phone. “Tomorrow afternoon.”

“Okay, cool. I’ll see you then,” Lena said with a hollow smile. 

Kara looked blankly at Lena, thrown off enough to not even reach for her fifth cookie. 

“What do you mean ‘see you then’?” she asked.

“What’s wrong?” Lena asked. “Did you want to stick around for dinner or something?” 

“Lena, I’m...I’m not going anywhere. I’m staying with you until this whole thing blows over. That’s kind of the whole the point.” 

“Oh,” Lena replied, looking surprised, if not a bit hopeful. “I thought you would just pop in here to do the livestream and then just go back to your own apartment.” 

“Of course not!” Kara said, almost offended. “Lena, I am a journalist. If I said I was going to commit to something and then only pretended to, that would be against the integrity of my whole career! When I said I was sticking out this isolation period with you, I meant it.” 

Lena blinked, taken aback by the passion in Kara’s statement. Kara shook her head at her friend’s confusion. 

“What did you think the duffel bag I brought with me was for?” she asked.

“I dunno!” Lena said with a breathy laugh. “I guess I thought it was art supplies or something for one of your project ideas.” 

“No! It’s, well yeah, there’s a few reams of yarn in there, but it’s mostly my clothes and stuff.” 

Lena leaned against her kitchen counter, considering Kara. 

“Okay,” she said, biting her lower lip. “I guess you’re really staying with me for a while, then.” The expression on Lena’s face was a mixture of anxiousness and glee. “So...what do you want for dinner? Or were you planning on eating cookies until you make yourself sick?” 

“Oh, I’m gonna eat all these cookies,” Kara said, reaching for another one. “But that doesn’t mean I’m not still gonna be hungry after.” 

“Of course,” Lena said with a laugh. “How could I forget that you’re a bottomless pit? We’ll be out of food in a day.” 

“Hey!” Kara retorted playfully. “Don’t forget we can still order plenty of takeout.” 

“Hmm,” Lena replied thoughtfully. “Fine. But just for tonight. If we eat nothing but takeout  _ one _ of us is going to gain weight like crazy. And I don’t mean you, Miss SuperMetabolism.” 

“Oh, please,” Kara said, moving towards the fridge to grab the clump of takeout menus stuck on it with a magnet. “I’ve seen you put away enough donuts and burgers to know that you can eat pretty much whatever you want and still look hot as hell.” 

The apartment fell silent. Kara realized what she had said the second it left her mouth. It shouldn’t have been weird. Best friends compliment each other like this all the time. But something about the tone in Kara’s voice, and the way that Lena was looking at her when she turned back around to face her said that it hadn’t quite landed as just a friendly compliment in either of their minds. Lena looked surprised, but also intrigued, her heartbeat unmistakably picking up in speed. Kara swallowed, wondering if she should just follow her instincts and stutter out a backpedaling clarification until they both resolved to shrug the statement off. You know, like they always did when one of them did or said something that danced on that line between just friends and something else…

“So, um,” Kara ultimately said, unable to stand the silence and the nervous thrumming of her own heartbeat any longer. “Pizza or Chinese?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys. I know I have a wip in this fandom at the moment, and I'm still working on it, but I wanted to make this light, fun story as something for yinz to enjoy while hunkering down at home. This should be a story that has no more than 3 or 4 parts. It will have next to no plot or heavy editing. I'm just churning this shit out as I go as a way to make some light in an increasingly grim situation. If you're curious, the cookies they made were actually 'cool whip cookies', which are fucking delicious, and require only 1 egg, a box of cake mix, cool whip, and powdered sugar. So if you have all those things on hand, look up the recipe and try it out to occupy some of your time.
> 
> I love you guys. Stay safe. Come message me on tumblr (url schatzietess) to talk or vent or whatever. We're in this together <3  
> -Tess-


	2. Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bed sharing and face masks. (The skincare kind. Not the pandemic kind)
> 
> (I added a note to the first chapter, but I'll say it again. Not everything in this story will be 100% accurate about what's happening or what you should or shouldn't do during quarantine depending on where you live. Please do the research for yourself. I am just a fic writer, and therefore should not be seen as a voice of authority on any of the current events in relationship to Covid19. Got it? Cool.)

“So we have a problem,” Lena said in between bites of lo mein. 

Something had changed in Lena since she had realized Kara wasn’t going anywhere. She was more relaxed, more willing to act like her true self in the comfort of her home, even talking with her mouth full as she had just displayed. But she was also a bit more tense somehow, too. Like she was contemplating something. 

“What’s that?” Kara asked, looking up from her plate, which had only one sad, solitary potsticker left on it. This whole “not being able to eat whatever you want whenever you want” thing was going to really be a struggle. 

“Well,” Lena said, followed by a quick exhale, almost like a sigh but more punctuated. “I mean, if I had known a few days ago before everything got serious that you were planning on all but moving in here for the time being, I would have made the necessary accommodations. But...I obviously didn’t know that, and despite the fact that there’s plenty of room in this apartment...I don’t have any kind of spare bedroom situation for you to make use of.” 

Kara tilted her head, not really having thought about the issue of where she was going to sleep until now. She had been so excited about the live stream and getting to spend time with her best friend that she had sort of forgotten about the logistics for the most part. 

“Well, I mean,” Kara began to say, but didn’t know what to say next. 

“You have to understand that I’ve simply never had a need for it. I don’t have any kind of family that would ever come to visit. None that I would ever allow in my apartment, anyway. And as far as friends, well, that almost solely consists of you, and we usually just hang out at your place. So I...well I filled the extra space with books and work stuff and…” 

“Lena?” Kara interrupted. 

“I’m rambling, aren’t I?” Lena said, slumping her shoulders, a coy smile on her lips.

“Just a little,” Kara replied softly. “It’s okay, Lena. I don’t mind sleeping on the couch.” 

“What? No! That’s not what I was going to say,” Lena said, pushing away the rest of her dinner. 

“Then what were you going to say?” Kara asked, confused. For a moment, she was worried that Lena was going to tell her to leave, to go home, that she didn’t want her in her apartment anymore, being so used to the comfort of living alone.

“I was just going to make sure that you were comfortable staying in my room with me,” Lena clarified. 

Kara blinked, needing a moment for Lena’s words to sink in.  _ Was _ that something she was comfortable with? Lena was Kara’s best friend. But this was definitely unchartered territory. And considering the fact that just the idea of sleeping in the same bed as Lena sent a thrill through Kara’s body that settled in the pit of her stomach and stuck, she made a point to choose her words carefully before she spoke. 

“I’m the one who sort of barged into your life. So I’ll leave it up to you to decide how much space you do or don’t need.” 

Lena licked her lips. Kara found herself following the motion of her tongue with her eyes. The pull in her gut became stronger. 

“Well, then,” Lena said slowly. Kara made a mental note to try and stop picking up on the sound of her Lena’s heartbeat, and when it quickened. It felt like a violation of her privacy, but it also told her that Lena was just as nervous as she was while discussing such a sensitive topic. “If it’s up to me to decide, then I think I would be a terrible host if I let you sleep on the couch.” 

Kara couldn’t stop the smile that tugged at the corners of her mouth. 

“Okay, then,” Kara said, practically giddy. “That settles that.” 

*

There was a difference of opinion on what to watch after dinner. Lena, ever the pessimist with scathing humor, wanted to watch Doomsday Preppers or whatever apocalypse movies were available on Netflix, while Kara wanted to watch Disney movies as her own personal form of self care. Kara, unsurprisingly, got her way. But it was still a weeknight, and even though time felt like an illusion and ‘work’ an abstract, negotiable term, it was getting late. And Lena, at least, whose job did not currently consist of live streaming her life in quarantine, had to be up early to run a major tech company in the midst of economic turmoil with next to no active staff.

Kara was pretty sure she had never been in Lena’s bedroom before. She’d hovered by the doorway as Lena finished getting ready before they went to dinner or drinks together. She’d seen the general layout of it. But she’d never physically been inside. Unlike the rest of her apartment, that was all marble and gray scale and had the general feeling of a museum in which nothing should be touched or put out of place, her bedroom was...warm. Cozy, even, despite the California King size bed and walk in closets. The walls were cream colored and filled with picture frames, a small white bookshelf displayed all her most cherished books. She had fresh flowers on both the vanity mirror and the nightstands. The bed had a floral pattern comforter and matching pastel colored pillows, and there was a plush white area rug on the floor that in and of itself was almost comfortable enough to sleep on. 

Kara took in all the details of Lena’s bedroom quietly, wanting to commit them all to memory even though she would likely become deeply familiar with them over the next couple of weeks. She noticed as she looked closer at the pictures on the wall, that most of them were of the two of them together. Kara’s chest felt tight as she felt the gravity of that fact sink in, that in the one place in Lena’s life where she felt most safe and comfortable, she chose to fill that space with pictures of her friendship with Kara. 

Lena cleared her throat, pulling Kara out of her thoughts. She had emerged from the bathroom attached to her bedroom, her eyes following where Kara’s were fixated and seeming to blush a bit, like Kara had stumbled onto some secret. 

“So, um,” Lena began to say, looking incredibly cute in an oversized t-shirt and boxers, her hair finally down and hanging loose around her shoulders. “Do you have a preferred side of the bed, or?” 

Kara didn’t respond immediately, unable to find any words. 

“What?” Lena asked, crossing her arms in front of her chest self consciously. 

“Nothing,” Kara replied with a smile. “I guess I just took you for an ‘expensive silk pajamas’ kind of person.” 

“God, no,” Lena replied, “It’s like sleeping in a slip and slide. And I refuse to wear anything with long sleeves or pant legs anyway. I run hot.” 

_ Yeah you do _ , Kara thought to herself, like an inappropriate knee jerk reaction. She inwardly scolded herself for the thought immediately after. 

Lena continued to hover in the doorway of her bathroom, seeming nervous. 

“This isn’t weird, is it?” she asked suddenly. 

“What?” Kara retorted, “Of course not! It’s like a sleepover, ya know?” 

“Right. Okay,” Lena said as a sigh, seeming to mentally have to talk herself into it before she finally stepped into the bedroom and crawled into her own bed. “You’re right. I guess I’m just not used to having anyone over here. Even if it’s you. I mean, you’re my best friend. So this is...totally normal.” 

“Lena?” Kara asked, turning to face Lena from where she sat at the foot of the bed. 

“Hmm?” Lena asked, distracting herself by scrolling through her phone. 

“I really don’t mind sleeping on the couch if you’re uncomfortable.” 

Lena sighed, putting her phone down on the nightstand and finally looking Kara in the eye. 

“Don’t be silly. This is completely fine. More than fine. Honestly, Kara I’m-” she hesitated, gathering her thoughts. “I’m really glad you’re here. I know I’m a sort of recluse by nature but honestly? This whole isolation thing was starting to get to me before you decided to come stay here. Maybe it was the disruption of my routine, maybe it was the anxiety from everything that’s going on right now. But I just...I really appreciate having someone to spend my time stuck here with. And I’m even more glad it’s you that’s here with me because you’re basically my favorite person in the world.”

Kara found herself beaming in response to Lena’s heartfelt rambling that almost bordered on gushing. 

“Well I’m sure it’s reassuring to know that you’re quarantined with a literal superhero, so nothing bad is going to happen to you.” 

“Right,” Lena said with a breathy laugh. “As long as I’m not hogging her all to myself when she should be out keeping the rest of National City safe.” 

“Not to worry,” Kara said as she crawled into the other side of the bed. It was so big she wondered if Lena would even notice that Kara was here. “I am on call for super duty at all times. It was a quiet night tonight, sure, but I know I have to get back out there tomorrow. People need to see Supergirl out helping however she can. Even if it’s just helping little old ladies go grocery shopping.” 

Lena nodded, eyes distant like she was deep in thought, until Kara could no longer see them when Lena shut off the light next to her nightstand. They were silent for a moment, Kara listening to their breathing, until Lena finally spoke. 

“Why do you do that?” she asked into the dark.

“Do what?” Kara asked, her eyes slowly adjusting to the low light and coming into focus on the way the moonlight shone on Lena, outlining her figure. 

“Sometimes you refer to Supergirl as ‘she’ instead of ‘you’, as if you’re two different people. Why is that?” 

Kara thought about that for a moment, not really having realized that it was something that she did. 

“I dunno,” she admitted truthfully. “I guess sometimes it just feels like I’m two different people. Besides having to hide my identity and all of that, it helps, I suppose, to be able to keep the two seperate every now and then. That way, when I’m in the suit, I can be Supergirl and have all her worries and responsibilities, and when I take it off, I can just...relax for a minute, and just be a regular person. You know?” 

Lena nodded. 

“Well,” she said quietly. “I am honored to be able to call both of you my friend.” 

Kara was glad for the darkness for hiding the sudden blush on her cheeks. 

“Shut up and go to sleep,” she said with a bashful laugh, and they both fell into a comfortable silence.

*

There were two very important things someone sharing a bed with Lena Luthor should know. First, was that she snored.  _ Loudly _ . Which would have been adorable if it hadn’t jolted Kara awake several times throughout the night. And second, Lena was clearly very used to having her ridiculously large bed all to herself. The very second she fell asleep, she rolled to the middle of the bed, laying on her stomach and raising her knee up to the level of her belly button like she was a lizard mid climb up a tree. Kara shook her head, rolling away from her and trying to go back to sleep. And eventually she did. Until the next round of snoring started and Kara woke up to find that Lena had shifted again, this time fully on Kara’s side of the bed, laying on her side. 

Kara sighed, apparently not used to sharing a bed either, because Lena definitely seemed too close to her. Slowly, Kara moved her hand to gently push Lena away, hoping to somehow activate her sleep rolling into moving her back to her side. But it had the exact opposite effect. Instead of rolling away, Lena surged forward until she was pressed up against Kara, slinging her arm around her waist and tugging slightly until Kara couldn’t help but give into it and let Lena unconsciously spoon her. What else was she supposed to do, shove her away? That seemed rude seeing as it was Lena’s bed…

And this wasn’t...terrible. It was sort of sweet, actually. And oddly comfortable. Despite the mental conflict in Kara as to whether or not it was crossing a boundary to let Lena cuddle up against her unknowingly, she felt herself start drifting off into a deep, comfortable sleep in Lena’s embrace.

That was, until Lena started moving her leg slowly up Kara’s, her smooth skin trailing against Kara’s inner thigh until her knee pressed against her…

Kara was suddenly  _ wide _ awake. And unable to ignore the surge of heat in the pit of her stomach from the unexpected contact. She’d be lying if she said it didn’t feel  _ good _ , but the fact that she was becoming aroused from being touched this way by her friend, who was still, by all accounts, fast asleep…

She needed to do something. She couldn’t just let this go. 

Kara cleared her throat, wishing she could avoid this next part…

“Lena?” Kara whispered. “Lena,” she said again when she didn’t stir, a bit louder than before. 

For a moment Lena only pulled Kara tighter, pressed her knee harder into Kara’s center, which was  _ not _ helping. But then she slowly opened her eyes, clearly disoriented for a moment, since her face was essentially in Kara’s chest, and she seemed to finally realize what was happening. 

“Oh,” she said, in a tone that was equal part perplexed and sleepy. “I...oh my god.” 

Lena didn’t immediately move away. It made Kara  _ very _ curious as to know just what she was thinking. For a moment that seemed to span an eternity, neither of them said or did anything, they just stayed like that, wrapped up in each other. The fleeting thought that maybe they should just stay like this only made the arousal Kara felt grow stronger.

“I’m, um,” Lena finally said, pulling her face away from Kara’s chest slightly. “I’m usually not such a clingy sleeper.” 

Kara had expected something different. She had expected Lena to apologize too much and pull away. It would have been on brand for her. But instead she just let the hollow explanation hang in the air, removing her knee from it’s precarious spot between Kara’s legs and loosening her grip on her but not removing herself entirely. Kara bit her lip, looking up at the ceiling of the dark bedroom becuase something told her that looking Lena in the eye right now would be too much to handle. 

“I don’t mind,” Kara said, before she could let herself think too much about whether or not that was the right thing to say. 

Lena cleared her throat, her hand which still loosely clung to Kara’s stomach tensing slightly. 

“Are you sure?” Lena asked. 

Kara wished that she was able to see Lena’s face better in the darkness. If she did, she might have been able to get a better read on what she was thinking, seeing as her tone of voice was calm and even along with her breathing and her heartbeat. Kara was usually good at reading people. But Lena was one of the few people on Earth that Kara admittedly had a hard time figuring out. 

“Yeah. Totally,” Kara said, grimacing instantly at how eager she had sounded. 

“Okay,” Lena said, and Kara felt her body relax again, not pressing any closer to Kara but comfortable enough not to move away, either.

This seemed like an important moment in their relationship. A shift that maybe one day, a while from now, would become an indicator between the before and after of what they were and what they might become. And Kara should have taken it more seriously. But she was so comfortable at that moment in Lena’s cautious embrace that she fell back asleep before she could contemplate any of that. 

*

Kara was up and hard at work early the next day, saving her from any ‘morning after’ awkwardness after having spent the better part of the night cuddle-sleeping with her best friend. People were starting to panic. Fights were breaking out in grocery stores as people found new things to run on each day. It started with toilet paper and cleaning supplies, then shifted to eggs and milk. Then canned goods and fresh produce. Supergirl did whatever she could to help. Urging people not to hoard, lifting heavy boxes for exhausted retail employees, serving as an overly qualified delivery girl by dropping groceries off at the homes of seniors who were afraid to go outside, visiting hospitals to give whatever encouraging words she could and taking selfies (with a face mask on, even though it was pointless for her to wear one). 

It felt like cheating, in a way. Sure, she was helping, and she wasn’t able to pass the virus around as far as she knew, but being outside, even as Supergirl and even because it was necessary, seemed dishonest. Kara had promised the world to show how to take self isolation seriously through her live stream, and yet here she was, out and about. She would never get used to the duality her two lives created, the constant lying and dishonesty. 

Lena was doing what she could on her own end from her apartment. There was no non-profit she refused a hefty donation check to, no community organization she turned away, giving whatever resources she could spare towards helping people get what they needed. While many of the wealthy people in the world were busy hiding away in their mansions and sending out ‘good vibes’, Lena was, as always, quietly giving any and everything that she could give. 

Kara touched down on the balcony of Lena’s apartment shortly after 4 pm, utterly exhausted but knowing she couldn’t miss the scheduled start of their live stream or her boss would be furious.

“Sorry, sorry, sorry,” Kara said in a rush, grabbing the spray can of disinfectant Lena had left on the balcony for her and spraying herself down before deactivating her suit. 

For a brief moment she was down to just a sports bra and shorts. And yes, she did catch Lena looking. But she was too preoccupied with the project, so she rushed at half super-speed into the bedroom, and threw on the comfy yet cute clothes she had set aside for today’s live stream that was waiting for her on Lena’s bed. 

“Trust me, you have nothing to be sorry for,” Lena replied from the living room. “Busy day, I see?” 

“Yeah,” Kara said with a sigh from the bedroom. “Why, what are people saying?” 

“All good things. As usual. You’re all over the news, facebook, twitter. Everyone is talking about The Girl of Steel, champion of the Earth and of little old ladies who just want to wipe their bums.” 

Kara cackled as she aggressively washed her hands. Just in case. 

“It does seem a little silly, doesn’t it?” she said.

“Of course not,” Lena replied in earnest. “People don’t need a grandiose savior right now. They just need kindness, they need to know they can still rely on their fellow man to band together and take care of each other. Or, fellow girl with superpowers, in your case.” 

“I suppose,” Kara replied as she padded back out into the living room, having swapped out her boots for fluffy socks and her red and blue suit for sweatpants with kittens on them and her favorite t-shirt. “How’s LCorp doing?” 

“It’s...afloat, for now,” Lena replied, her work laptop noticeably being avoided and sitting on the coffee table as far away from Lena as possible. “The finance team is going to have a collective heart attack when they see how much of the petty cash funds I funneled into community aid.” 

“You are literally too good, Lena Luthor,” Kara said earnestly as she plopped down next to her on the couch. “Okay. Only ten minutes behind schedule. Ready to go live?” 

Lena frowned slightly, still entirely unused to the idea of cameras in her home. But she nodded. 

“I suppose. What are we doing today?” 

“Face masks!” Kara said, the jitters from the upcoming stream and the comfort of being back with one of her favorite humans feeling like she just downed a shot of espresso. 

“Kara, I told you there was a shortage of medical masks, we shouldn’t waste any just for a video…” Lena said warily. 

“No, no, no! Not the pandemic kind. The skincare kind. We’re gonna make homemade ones with basic ingredients so people can replicate them at home.” 

“So…” Lena said slowly, “You want me to slather goop all over my face in front of hundreds of people?” 

“Yes,” Kara replied without a hint of hesitation. 

Lena sighed. 

“Must I?” she said, and then conceded to smile after Kara pouted only a little bit. “Oh, fine.” 

“Yay! Okay, let’s go!” Kara said, grabbed her laptop, and rushed into the kitchen to prepare the ingredients she would need. 

*

“Hi, again, viewers! And happy Monday!” 

Lena groaned. 

  
“What?” Kara asked. 

“You are the only person I know that says ‘Happy Monday’ and actually means it.” 

“Of course I mean it! It’s Face Mask Monday!” 

Lena shook her head, trying to stifle a laugh at Kara’s antics. Kara glared at her. 

“Fine, fine, it’s Face Mask Monday!” Lena said in a faux enthusiastic tone, throwing up jazz hands for emphasis.

“So,” Kara said, rolling her eyes jokingly at Lena and turning back to face the camera on the laptop. “Before we start, I must say that everything in this kitchen is fully sanitized, and we both scrubbed our hands more than doctors before a surgery to do this. So, yes, we will be touching our faces a little bit to put the masks on, but we are doing so  _ responsibly _ .” 

“God, I had no idea how hard it was not to touch your face until all this started,” Lena bemoaned. 

“I  _ know _ ,” Kara whined in agreement. “Anyhow, I picked two different kinds of homemade face masks you can make from stuff you still probably have in your house.”

“Why do you have one of my avocados?” Lena asked as she looked down at the ingredients Kara had laid out on the kitchen table. 

“Uh, because we need it for the dry skin mask.” 

“Kara, we are  _ millenials _ , we don’t waste avocados on anything but toast.” 

“But it was gonna go bad!”

“We could be making gauc and instead you murder an avocado for this?” 

Kara was laughing nearly uncontrollably at Lena’s animated reaction. She didn’t know what had changed, why Lena seemed suddenly so eager and engaged about the live stream when she had been so reluctant yesterday. 

*

“Okay, which one do you want?” Kara asked. 

“What’s that one for?” Lena said, pointing to the lemon and baking soda mask.

“Clear skin.” 

“Okay, give me that one,” Lena said.

“What? Why? You don’t need it,” Kara insisted.

“Well, it’s not like  _ you _ can use it. You’re physically incapable of getting a pimple, seeing as you’re-”

Lena stopped herself mid sentence, eyes going wide. They both knew without saying that she had almost said something that could have revealed Kara’s identity as Supergirl. 

“You’re...” Lena said slowly, trying to fix the situation as smoothly as she could. “Perfect. I mean, your skin is perfect.” 

Kara narrowed her eyes at Lena, with a smile. She had managed to sidestep an accidental reveal, while also managing to compliment Kara at the same time in a way that made her a little flustered. 

“Okay. Fine. You get that one,” Kara conceded. “Now sit still.” 

“What? Why?” Lena asked.

“Because I’m gonna put it on for you and I don’t want to get it in your hair.” 

“Kara, I can do it on myself.” 

“Nope. Not as fun. Now shh,” Kara said, and stuck her fingers into the bowl full of goop, smearing it across Lena’s forehead before she could protest further.

Lena grimaced as Kara covered her forehead and nose. Kara did have to admit that of the two facemasks this one did seem a bit slimier than the other. But Lena eventually got used to the strange sensation of having slime wiped all over her face, until eventually she was simply watching Kara intently as she applied the mask. 

Something about that look, those green eyes that seemed to glisten with excitement whenever Kara dared herself to meet them. It made Kara’s stomach flutter, made her wish there wasn’t a camera on them…

Speaking of, the two of them had grown silent, and that certainly wasn’t entertaining to anyone who was tuning in. Kara turned away from Lena’s mind crippling stare so that she could see what the viewers were up to in the comments that rolled along on the side of the screen. 

“ _ Only Lena Luthor could make facemasks seem hot, _ ” one user wrote.

_ “Dunno if I have a fever or I just can’t handle how cute these two are…”  _

_ “I’ve shipped Lena and Supergirl forever but now I might have to reevaluate” _

_ “Oh fuck, I ship it”  _

Kara let out a flustered laugh, growing more and more confused with each barely intelligible comment. 

“What?” Lena asked. 

“I have no idea what’s happening in the comments right now,” Kara explained. “What are you guys talking about?” 

“What are they saying?” Lena said, turning her glistening, mask covered face to the computer. “Wonder if Supergirl is watching this,” Lena began to read aloud, “and getting jealous that her girlfriend is quarantined with another woman.” 

Lena let out a bark of a laugh as she continued to scan through the comments.

“What? I don’t get it,” Kara said. 

“Don’t tell me you don’t know about this, Kara,” Lena said, clearly amused and in on some joke that Kara was not.

“Know about what?” Kara pressed. 

“Well, there’s a bunch of people who think that I’m secretly dating  _ Supergirl _ ,” she said, the emphasis on the last word having coded meaning for Kara’s benefit. 

“What?” Kara exclaimed, feeling her cheeks go hot. “Why would they think that? Why do you guys think that?” she demanded to her invisible viewers. 

“It’s not a big deal, Kara. I don’t mind it,” Lena said, grabbing the unused bowl of facemask and preparing to give Kara the same treatment she’d given her. “It’s actually sort of funny. As long as you stay away from the fanart because let me tell you, it can get  _ racy _ .” 

“Wha...I-” Kara stammered. “But you’re not dating Supergirl!” 

“Not that you know of,” Lena said playfully, punctuating her statement by dabbing a bit of the avocado mixture onto the bridge of Kara’s nose. 

“Lena,” Kara said, trying to sound stern even though she felt herself grinning like an idiot.

“What?” Lena asked innocently, beginning to coat Kara’s cheeks with the mask. “You don’t think I could date someone like Supergirl?” 

Kara let out an exasperated sigh, wondering why Lena insisted on teasing her about the topic. Was it for the sake of the viewers, or something more? 

“You can date whoever you want,” Kara replied. “Supergirl would be lucky to have you.” 

Lena stopped, narrowing her eyes inquisitively at Kara for a moment, before breaking up the sudden tension by smearing a huge glob of the mask onto Kara’s forehead unexpectedly. 

“Hey!” Kara exclaimed, laughing as half of it fell off and landed in her lap. “You’re wasting your precious avocado!” 

Kara turned back to the screen just in time to see someone comment  _ “Oh shit, I think Kara’s jealous!”  _

But that was obviously not true. First, because she couldn’t be jealous of herself. And second, because…

Just  _ because _ . 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story maaayyyy end up being longer than I anticipated. Just like this fkin quarantine! So! 
> 
> In case you were wondering, the skin clearing face mask is 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon honey, and one teaspoon baking soda. The dry skin one is 2 tablespoons honey, 1/4 of an avocado (mashed), and 2 tablespoons ground almonds. Try them out if you're bored (WASH YOUR HANDS A LOT FIRST), or maybe don't if it sounds like a bad idea, i dunno, I just wanted some of that sweet forbidden face touching in this chapter lol
> 
> Stay safe. Love yinz. Thanks for being so vocally supportive of this story so far <3  
> Tess


	3. Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (Panic attack cw/tw towards the end of this chap.)

“Well, that’s all we have for you today, guys,” Kara said to the camera as she wiped the last of the mask off of her face. “What do we think about the masks, Lena?” 

“I’ve endured worse,” Lena said with a wry smile. 

“That’s about as positive as she’s gonna get. So I will post the mask recipes on the CatCo website. Stay safe, stay inside, and most importantly, if you find yourself paired up in self isolation with another person, try not to snore too loud and keep them up like this one does.” 

“Hey!” Lena said, feigning offense just as Kara shut off the live stream. 

Kara let out a sigh of relief, happy to be out of the eye of the virtual public. It was exhausting to find ways to be entertaining for an hour or more at a time. 

“That was...interesting,” Kara said. 

“Which part?” Lena asked as she made her way to the bathroom to wash the rest of the mask residue off of her face. “The slathering muck all over our faces part or the thirsty fans part?” 

Kara frowned, following Lena to the bathroom so she could continue their conversation. 

“Obviously the second part.” 

Lena shrugged as she wet a rag and wiped herself off. 

“It’s nothing I’m not used to. Questions of my dating life have been all over local tabloids for as long as I’ve lived here. Every time I make eye contact with a guy people think we’re screwing. At least the Supergirl thing seems more realistic.” 

“Realistic? How?” 

“Oh, come on, Kara,” Lena said, leaning against the doorframe of the bathroom. “You and I have teamed up to save the world together dozens of times. We work well together. And we’re already best friends behind the scenes. Any chemistry people are assuming of us is at least rooted in something real.” 

“So you mean to tell me it doesn’t bother you that people think you and I are...you know…”

“Having sex?” Lena replied bluntly. 

Kara cleared her throat, trying not to visibly react to Lena’s statement. 

“No. It doesn’t bother me,” Lena continued. “But it does seem to bother  _ you _ .” 

Something about Lena’s tone hinted at the fact that Kara’s taking issue with the rumors wounded her. 

“You’re mad at me,” Kara guessed. 

“I’m not,” Lena said, pressing the damp towel into Kara’s chest to use herself before walking away from her without another word. 

She definitely was. And Kara couldn’t blame her. One second they were sleeping wrapped around each other and, let’s call it what it is,  _ flirting _ , in front of thousands of online viewers, and the next second Kara was freaking out over the thought of anyone assuming they were more than friends, whether they were talking about Kara or Supergirl. Kara wasn’t stupid. She knew there was something more between them than just friendly affection. So why did she freeze up like that when it was finally brought up for discussion?

As if she was an oracle sensing that Kara was in need of advice, Kara pulled her suddenly buzzing phone out of her pocket to see that Alex wanted to FaceTime with her. Kara answered almost immediately. 

“Hey,” Kara said in a sigh of relief, realizing just how much she had missed her sister, even though it had only been a couple of days since they last saw each other. 

Alex was on her couch, in her pajamas and with no makeup on, Kelly reading a book next to her. 

“Are you alone?” Alex asked.

“Uh,” Kara said, peeking down the hall to see Lena on her laptop. Kara stepped into the bathroom and shut the door behind her. “Yeah.”

“Good. What the  _ hell _ did I just watch?” 

“Uh. I dunno. What did you watch?” 

“For god’s sake,” Alex muttered, turning away from her phone to compose herself. “The livestream! That ridiculous, ‘am I seriously gonna keep watching Lena put the moves on my sister’ livestream!”

“Aww, you’ve been watching?” Kara said in earnest. 

“Kara.  _ Not _ the point.” 

“Ugh,” Kara groaned, leaning against the sink. “Can we talk about something else?

“No.”

“Oh, come on!” Kara whined, trying not to speak too loudly. “Look, I don’t know what to say. I’m navigating a lot of...stuff with Lena right now. Okay? The living together, the whole ‘people shipping Lena and Supergirl’ thing, the cuddling last night…”

“The what?” Alex asked abruptly. 

“Well Lena is a very touchy sleeper. It was sort of unavoidable.” 

“You guys are sleeping in the same bed?”

“Mmhmm.”

  
“And you cuddled?” 

“Correct.” 

Kelly could be heard chuckling off the screen.

“What?” Kara demanded to know. 

“We have a bet,” Alex said. “I’m losing. Don’t worry about it. Anyway, just...let me say one thing before you tell me not to talk about this whole livestream thing anymore.”

Kara rolled her eyes, forgetting for a moment that they were facetimeing and Alex could definitely see her rolling her eyes at her.

“Fine. What?” she said.

“This thing you guys are doing is getting a lot of attention. Which is great, it’s exactly what you wanted. And I want to support you by watching but...please. Please don’t make me watch you two make out on screen.” 

“We won’t! Geez, Alex. I have  _ some _ self control. Besides, I think Lena is mad at me right now, anyway.”

“And why is that?” Alex asked, clutching her forehead like this whole interaction was giving her a headache.

“Because Kara freaked out at the suggestion that her and Lena were in a relationship,” Kelly supplied, not looking up from her book. “And now Lena is probably feeling confused over being given mixed signals about the true nature of their connection to one another.” 

Kara’s expression went blank, trying not to be annoyed.

“Is she always right?” Kara asked.

“Yeah. You get used to it. So what are you going to do? Go talk to her about it and fix things or just keep ignoring your feelings and letting the tension keep building pointlessly between the two of you?” 

Kara sighed. Her chat with Alex wasn’t revealing anything to her which she didn’t already know, but it was helping to have it spelled out for her in Alex’s typical blunt way. 

“Alright.  _ Fine _ . I’ll go talk to Lena. Thanks. Love you guys.” 

“We love you. Seriously, though, no tongues in mouths on camera.” 

“Oh, shh,” Kara hissed, and ended the call. 

She took a deep breath, bracing for the impending conversation, and opened the bathroom door. 

“Lena?” she asked tentatively, wanting to know what mood Lena was in before she walked into the living room. 

“Hmm?” Lena murmured, looking wholly invested in some sort of work on her laptop. Or she was pretending to look busy to avoid talking to Kara. Kara was about to find out which was which. 

Nervously chewing at her bottom lip, Kara walked quietly down the hallway until she was behind the couch Lena was sitting on, and she crawled over the back of it until she was sitting next to her. 

“So maybe it bothered me a little bit to find out that people think you and I, or you and Supergirl, are dating.” 

“Really? I had no idea,” Lena said dryly. 

“Lena,” Kara breathed. “You’re getting the wrong idea here. It didn’t bother me becuase I’m against the  _ concept _ , per se.” 

Lena stopped looking at her screen, turning her head slowly to look at Kara, an eyebrow quirked upwards with peaked curiosity

“I just,” Kara struggled, forcing herself to get through what she wanted to say without choking on her words and brushing off the whole thing. “I guess I’m someone who likes their relationships, romantic or not, to develop organically. And having a bunch of people making assumptions and insinuations kind of ruins that.” 

Lena licked her lips, finally resolving to shut her laptop and set it down on the coffee table in front of her. 

“Kara, you said you wanted to do this whole project to help people, right? To give them something to look forward to?” 

“Yeah. Of course.” 

“Well you’re doing a great job so far! You’re reaching so many people with this. And if they decide to keep watching becuase they think that there’s something...more going on between us, then let them. It doesn’t change anything. You and I can still be who we are. Just...think of it as putting on a performance for an audience.” 

Kara felt her nose scrunch up, not really expecting that response from Lena.

“You mean like acting?” Kara asked.

“Exactly.”

“You want to act like we’re a couple when we’re on the livestream?”

The full gravity of what Lena had suggested seemed to catch up with her, and Lena let out a small, nervous laugh.

“Not necessarily,” she said. “Just...play into it when the topic comes up. Make it fun, you know? It definitely won’t go away if you get all flustered and defensive whenever it comes up. That will only make people believe it more.” 

“So you want me to flirt with you on camera?” Kara asked.

“Isn’t that what we were doing already?” Lena asked. 

It was supposed to be a joke, but the way they both reacted to it being said out loud made it not quite land that way. 

“...Maybe?” Kara replied tentatively. 

“Well, okay,” Lena said. “Then it should be no problem. Right?” 

“R-right,” Kara wavered, unsure of exactly what she had just signed up for. 

*

Kara laid in Lena’s bed that night, arms kept firmly at her sides above the comforter as she waited for Lena to come out of the bathroom. Kara was...nervous? 

It’s not like she had a reason to be. It’s not like she was sleeping in the same bed as her best friend that she was a little attracted to, who liked to sleep cuddled up next to her. And it’s not like this aforementioned friend recently admitted that she not only knew that people thought they were fucking, but that she thought they should encourage it by flirting with each other on camera…

Oh boy. 

Lena finally emerged, hair once again down in loose, luxurious curls, and wearing a similarly oversized t-shirt as the night before, only this time she had apparently decided to forgo the shorts. Kara all but did a double take to make sure she was seeing that right. Yep, she was. Lena was coming to bed wearing nothing but a t-shirt and lingerie. And Kara, in her button up pajama shirt and pants, felt incredibly overdressed. And overwhelmed. 

Kara’s eyes shot back up to the ceiling so that she would stop ogling Lena. She thought she heard a soft chuckle from Lena in response to the sudden aversion of her eyes. Was Lena doing this on purpose? 

“So,” Lena said as she crawled under the covers on her side of the bed and switched off the light. “What’s on the livestream itinerary for tomorrow?” 

“Actually, I thought you might want to plan our activity for the next one. You’re good at literally everything, so I figure you can teach me and everyone else something new.” 

“Hmm,” Lena mused. “Okay. I will.” 

“Good,” Kara said. 

Her tone was so careful and timid. She had never felt so nervous around Lena before. But now she felt herself questioning everything. What she said, what she did, what she wore. What  _ Lena _ wore.

Which was not very much at the moment. And that wasn’t doing anything to ease Kara’s anxieties. And on top of everything else, in the back of her mind was this ever present dread about how things outside their little haven kept getting worse and worse. Every day seemed more bleak. Every news story more distressing. Being here with Lena should have made her feel calm, safe, secure. Instead it made her feel like her stomach was doing somersaults. 

“Well, goodnight,” Kara blurted out abruptly, and rolled away from Lena, facing the window. 

Lena let out a soft huff of breath. Perhaps she had expected things to go a little differently this evening. And perhaps Kara had too, until her nerves got the best of her and made her just want to try to get to sleep and forget about everything that was going on for just a few hours.

But Kara couldn’t sleep. There was too much to think about, too much to worry about. Lena didn’t seem to have the same problem. But just because she fell asleep relatively quickly after being letdown by Kara’s refusal to relive  _ some _ of the tension between them, didn’t mean she slept soundly. It was only a few minutes after Kara heard her first soft, breathy snore that Lena’s sleep flailing started. What on earth did she dream about that made her so animated? 

Kara knew what worked last time. What finally stilled Lena’s tossing and turning. And although it seemed like everything between them was more...charged than it was even yesterday, she was desperate to get some sleep before she had to go back out and face whatever fresh hell the world had in store for her tomorrow. So she swallowed past her jitters, and reached over to grasp Lena by her waist and pull her close. Lena stilled almost instantly, letting out a deep, unconscious sigh as her body relaxed against Kara’s. 

“Goddammit,” Kara muttered to herself, realizing that this was easily going to become a habit. Which she would be fine with, if it didn’t make her desperately want more. 

*

The first break of dawn streaming in through Lena’s bedroom window woke Kara before her alarm did. She sighed heavily, the exhale of breath disturbing the dark, sleep tousled hair her face was nestled into. 

_ Oh. Right _ , Kara thought as she remembered why she was curled up so close to Lena. 

Kara didn’t want to get up. Didn’t want to wake Lena. Didn’t want to leave the comfort and safety of this bed and face the harsh realities of the new normal outside of it. Lena, whether awake or not, seemed to sense Kara’s dread and she rolled over, bringing them face to face and moving to wrap and arm around Kara’s back, eyes still closed and breathing serenely. Kara’s heart fluttered. It was one thing for them to lie so close together. But to do so face to face? It was utterly disarming, even if Lena was still asleep. But it was also a huge comfort. 

“I wish we could just stay like this,” Kara whispered, assuming Lena wouldn’t hear. “I wish I didn’t have to go.” 

“Then don’t,” Lena murmured, surprising Kara as she slowly opened her eyes.

Kara should have been embarrassed, knowing that Lena had heard her confession. But she wasn’t. Not when Lena gave her the warmest most genuine smile imaginable, drowsiness clinging to her features in a way that made them soft and inviting. 

“I have to, Lena,” Kara replied quietely, daring to tighten her grip around Lena’s waist, pulling her just a fraction closer. It just felt so  _ good _ . “Supergirl can’t just hide herself away at a time like this. People need her.” 

“I’m people.nWhat if I need you more?” 

“Lena,” Kara whispered, the yearning within her settling into her chest and expanding, threatening to crack her open and send all her pent up need spilling out. 

It would be so easy to follow that train of thought, to dare Lena to prove how much she needed her. But then Kara’s alarm sounded, gratingly,  _ rudely _ , and pulled her back to reality. Kara sighed, filled with regret over missed opportunities as she pulled away from Lena to silence the aggravating sound. 

“I’ll be back soon,” Kara promised, defying her typical shyness long enough to take the hand that had gripped her waist, which had chased after Kara when she pulled away, and bring it to her lips, kissing it delicately. 

Lena watched the movement, licking her lips before she looked into Kara’s eyes again. 

“Promise?” 

Kara grinned like an idiot. 

“Promise.” 

“Okay,” Lena said, rolling onto her back and watching Kara as she pulled herself out of bed. “Be safe.” 

“Always,” Kara replied. 

*

Things were getting bad. Bad in the way that felt like humanity had suddenly been dropped in a deep dark pit without so much as a rope to pull themselves out with. Instead of panicked activity, people bustling about trying to gain some semblance of control over the sliver of the world that they claimed as their own, they went still and silent. Afraid, but safer this way.

Not everyone was so lucky.

Kara tried not to think about it, about all the most grim parts of the pandemic. Every time she did it felt like the weight of it would crush her. So she just kept working. Kept smiling. Kept doing whatever she could to help. But it felt like the darkness was swallowing the light, draining her and everyone else out there still fighting the good fight against an invisible and petrifying enemy. 

It was Alex, ultimately, who told her to go home. She knew her sister well enough to know the pained, struggling eyes hiding behind her smile when she saw it, even if she saw it on the news from the safety of her apartment and called her to check in.

“Kara, you are about to crack and you know it. Do you hear me? You need to call it quits for today.” 

“I can’t,” Kara breathed as she leaned against the outside wall of the food bank. “There’s too much to do.” 

“Listen to me,” Alex urged through the phone. “Supergirl is the Paragon of Hope. That is your role here. And you are doing  _ so _ well at it. But if you lose it, like you are about to, in front of those people? In front of a camera? You have to know your limits. Or everyone will be worse off. Okay?” 

Kara let out a shaky sigh. She knew Alex was right, but she still felt a wave of guilt at the thought of just going home. Calling it a day. When so many people out there were working themselves to the bone trying to keep the world from falling apart. 

“It’s okay, Kara. It’s okay to be upset. We all are. But you can’t let anyone see it. Not as Supergirl. And if you need something to brighten your spirits? Just know that I love you and I am so proud of you, and of Lena, for everything that you are doing. And also...maybe check out some of the buzz you two are getting over that livestream of yours. People are getting pretty...intense about it. It’s kind of hilarious.” 

Kara let out a dry laugh, the only thing breaking up the pressure that had been building in her chest since she had flown out the balcony door of Lena’s apartment that morning. 

“I love you,” Kara said. 

“I love you, too. Tell Lena hi for me, will you?” 

*

Kara touched down softly on the balcony, falling into her new routine of spraying herself down with sanitizer and stripping off the outermost layers of her clothes before stepping inside and heading straight to the bathroom to wash her hands vigorously and hop in the shower. If her need to be out there helping people ended up getting Lena sick, she would never forgive herself.

When she emerged into the main part of the apartment again, she was surprised to see that she couldn’t immediately find Lena. After a quick scan, she heard her heartbeat down the hall, in one of the spare bedrooms she had converted into a library. Kara made her way down the hall and opened the door to the library softly, careful not to startle Lena. She imagined she would find her curled up in her big leather chair with a book in hand, lost in whatever historical fiction or poetry collection had caught her attention. Instead, Lena was sitting on the floor in front of the chair, the curtains drawn and the lights off, her chest heaving with barely controlled sobs. 

“Lena? Lena,” Kara called, rushing to her side instantly and sinking down onto the floor next to her, pulling her into her chest. “Hey. What’s wrong? What’s happened?” 

Kara coming to Lena’s aid only seemed to make it worse for a second, the embarrassment of being discovered crying on her library floor making it that much harder for Lena to calm down. Her breathing became more erratic and frantic. She flinched at Kara’s touch like she wanted to run. Kara had had enough panic attacks in her life to know one when she saw one. The only thing she could think to do was pull Lena closer to her until she was in her lap, letting Lena hide her face in the crook of her neck. 

“Just breathe,” Kara said, stroking Lena’s hair and wishing she could do more to help. “Put your head on my chest and match my breathing. Okay?” 

Lena obliged, her inhales shaking her chest in effort and her exhales choked out with sobs. But it was working. Her breathing slowly became steadier, her hands stopped shaking as they gripped Kara’s forearm tightly. Eventually she could breathe normally again, and a deafening silence filled the library. 

“I’m sorry,” Lena whispered, moving to wipe her tears onto her sleeve with an aggressive swipe, like she was angry with herself for coming apart. 

“Don’t be. Don’t,” Kara consoled. “You were watching the news all day again, weren’t you?” 

Lena nodded against Kara’s chest. 

“You have to stop, Lena.” 

“I have to know what’s going on,” Lena struggled to say, her voice hoarse. “I can’t just lock myself away with all my money and my privilege and not give a shit about everyone out there going through this.” 

“You are not locking yourself away,” Kara insisted firmly. “You are being  _ responsible _ . And you are doing everything you can to help and you know it. So I don’t want to hear you getting down on yourself like this.” 

“I would be of more help out there.  _ Doing _ something. Like you.” 

“Hey,” Kara said, moving Lena so she was sitting in front of her instead of on top of her, placing her hands gently on Lena’s cheeks to command her attention. “Listen to me. I am out there because what’s going on can’t hurt me. But it can hurt you. And I don’t think I could handle it if anything happened to you. So, like it or not, staying here is the best thing you can be doing right now. Knowing you’re safe keeps me focused. And you being healthy keeps you focused so you can keep putting your resources at LCorp to good use. You aren’t doing anyone any good by getting yourself sick. Do you understand?” 

Lena nodded, moving to roughly wipe away a tear again before Kara stopped her with a gentle grip on her wrist and wiped it away herself with her sleeve. 

Kara felt a buzzing in her pocket. She ignored it. It wasn’t important right now. Making Lena feel better was the only thing she cared about.

“Kara,” Lena said, noticing Kara’s phone buzz it’s way out of her sweatpants pocket. “Your phone is ringing.” 

“Don’t worry about it.” 

“Kara,” Lena insisted. 

“Okay,” Kara said regretfully, only to see the last name she wanted to see on an incoming call screen. “Miss Grant!” 

“Your livestream is officially five mintues late. People are looking forward to this, Kara. They want their daily dose of your ridiculous will they/won’t they tension fest with Lena to distract from all the  _ real _ news in the world. So why are you five minutes late?” 

Kara sighed. 

“Personal emergency. I don’t know if we can-” 

Lena moved to suddenly snatch the phone out of Kara’s hand.

“Cat? Yeah. We’re running a little late, but we’ll be live in a couple minutes. No need to-yeah. Yep. Okay. Goodbye.” Lena hung up Kara’s phone. “ _ God _ she’s formidable.” 

“Lena…” Kara began to say. “We don’t have to…”

“Of course we do. Let me just get my things.” 

“But Lena, you’re upset,” Kara insisted cautiously.

“Yeah. And so are a lot of people. So we have to keep going. Otherwise what’s the point?” 

Kara frowned, finding Lena’s perseverance admirable but still more than worried about her friend. Still, Lena pushed forward, grabbing Kara’s laptop out of Kara’s work bag and setting it up on the windowsill facing a small table with two chairs on the far side of the library, a chessboard already set up on the table. 

“Chess?” Kara asked. 

“Yes,” Lena said with a self assuring sigh. “It always helps me focus when something is bothering me. And I never took the time to teach you to play. So. No better time like the present. Come on.” 

“Are you sure about this?” Kara asked, still hoping she could convince Lena to reconsider broadcasting herself to thousands of people after having just come down from a pretty nasty panic attack. 

“You sure you’re ready for me to kick your ass at chess, Danvers?” Lena teased. 

Kara shook her head, unable to contain a smile. Lena never ceased to surprise and impress Kara. 

“We’ll see about that,” Kara replied, pulling herself off the ground to join Lena in front of the chessboard. 

*

“Hey, everyone!” Kara said to the camera once the stream started. “Hope you’re all staying safe.” 

“And sane,” Lena chimed in. “Sorry about the bags under my eyes. I cried all my makeup off. Anxiety is a bitch, am I right?” 

Kara turned her head suddenly to Lena, surprised at her candid confession. The Lena she thought she knew would never admit that kind of weakness to anyone, even herself. And yet she was now. And in a strange way, Kara knew it was exactly what she needed to do, not just for her sake, but for the sake of everyone watching, as well, so they knew they weren’t quite so alone in their fear as they thought. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cat grant is in this story now. I kept avoiding saying who Kara's superior was at Catco cuz I didn't know who to go with, but fuck canon and any sensible timeline, Cat Grant is back bitches!!
> 
> This update is meant to be more than anything else, a reminder that it's okay to lose it every now and then right now. I cry at least 4 times a day. It's more than a normal response to all this. So let it out.
> 
> I love you guys so much. I love getting to interact with you. I love seeing your comments and kudos. Please don't hesitate to come find me to chat on tumblr (url schatzietess) if you need someone to talk to or vent to. This fic is nothing more or less than a love letter to you, to archive, to fic, and to the community it creates.
> 
> Stay safe,   
> -Tess-


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is brief and barely coherent, but I know how much you guys wanted an update, so...here ya go <3

“Do you understand the rules?” 

“Nope,” Kara said with a flustered sigh. 

Checkers would have been much easier. Chess was  _ complicated _ .

Lena laughed. Her mood was already a million times brighter since when Kara had first come home. It had helped a lot for Lena to talk about it candidly on camera, and to see such love and support in the comments from the viewers. Not that Kara had been telling Lena for years that she needed to open up to people or anything...

“It’s okay. You’ll pick it up as you go,” Lena insisted. “Since you have the white pieces, you go first.” 

Kara lost the first game in about half a dozen moves. She had been so focused on being able to move pawns two squares at a time on the first move, and was going for a “get all your pieces over to that side” type offense, that Lena slid her queen past Kara’s ineffective little blockade and all the way across the board to a checkmate. 

“No fair,” Kara said, making a point to pout even though she never expected to win. “You have all those fancy chess strategies in your head.” 

“It’s not ‘fancy’ strategy, Kara, it’s just reacting to your moves. Don’t think so much about how you want your pieces to move. Watch how my pieces move, and try to figure out what I’m trying to do or what weaknesses I’ve revealed on my own side.”

Kara nodded, biting her lower lip as she watched Lena’s expert hands reset the board and settle back against the table. Kara tried to compare the game to something she had a better understanding of. Like being Supergirl. Her instinct when she had that suit on was to attack first, to go straight towards the problem, or the bad guy, and start punching. Because for the most part, Supergirl was the superior competitor. But Kara was the inferior in this case. Lena had been playing this game for years with her brother, both of whom were chess masters. And Kara was a complete beginner. So it made no sense for her to go on the attack right away. She simply needed to play along until she found Lena’s weakness. So...what was her weakness?

With a smug smirk as she realized the answer, Kara looked towards the camera and her viewers, and winked.

“You better not be helping her cheat,” Lena said to the camera, only glancing over to the computer for a second before looking back at Kara and waiting for her to make her first move. 

“Maybe they should, I need all the help I can get,” Kara said, feigning helplessness as she moved one of her pawns in the same way she had during the first game. She locked her eyes on Lena to see how she would react. “I just don’t  _ get _ it.” 

Lena moved one of her own pawns, mirroring Kara’s move. 

“You get it just fine. It just takes practice.” 

“Hmm,” Kara said, and leaned back against her chair, making a dramatic show of stretching, and watched with glee as Lena’s eyes wandered up from the chess board. 

If there was one thing Kara had noticed about Lena in the course of their friendship, it was that she had a habit of  _ noticing _ Kara. Kara wouldn’t go so far as to say that Lena was checking her out. That seemed too vulgar a description for it. It was more like she...appreciated Kara’s physique. When Kara crossed her arms in deep thought while wearing short sleeves, Lena took a moment to  _ appreciate _ Kara’s biceps. When they went for a run together, Kara joining along more for the conversation than the exercise, Lena would let Kara take the lead so she could appreciate the way Kara’s legging clung to her backside. And when she wore something more low cut, usually borrowed from Lena’s closet, Lena almost always got caught appreciating Kara’s cleavage. 

Maybe Kara should have thought more critically about the fact that her best friend very frequently checked her out. Or maybe she should have asked herself why she always seemed to get a little giddy whenever she caught Lena in the act. But she could worry about all of that later. Because all that mattered right now was that she could use this little habit of Lena’s to her advantage. Besides, Lena was the one who had the bright idea to deliberately flirt with each other on camera, right? She only had herself to blame for what came next.

Coincidentally, Kara had changed into the outfit she needed for the livestream in sort of a rush after Lena had pushed through her resolve to go ahead and go live despite her anxiety attack. The effect being that Kara had, in her hurrying, neglected to button the last couple of buttons near the top of her blouse. 

So Kara stretched, pressing her arms far out on each side so that the still secured buttons strained against the swell of her breasts. She faked a yawn only so that she could see if Lena was paying attention. And she was. With unbroken focus, as a matter of fact, Lena’s jaw going a bit slack as she watched Kara’s chest strain against the fabric of her blouse. 

Kara finally settled back to lean against the table, moving another pawn with a quick flick of her wrist, seemingly without thinking about the move too much even though she had already planned it carefully during her stretch. 

“You can move something besides a pawn, you know,” Lena said, begrudgingly taking her eyes away from Kara’s chest long enough to move her knight over a pawn and over a few spaces, likely keeping it just in place to pounce on the king once Kara moved the right piece out of the way.

But in doing so, Lena had neglected to notice that Kara was able to take one of her pawns with her own. A small concession, perhaps even a deliberate one, but it bolstered Kara’s confidence in her plan nonetheless.

“So. Any special stakes for this game?” Kara asked ildy. 

Lena narrowed her eyes at her chess partner, thinking about her question. 

“How about,” Lena said as she sized up the pieces on the board. “Loser has to cook dinner?”

“Deal.”

The game continued similarly for a few moves. When Kara rolled up her sleeves and brought her hands up behind her head in ‘thought’, Lena stared at her biceps until Kara claimed a rook. When Kara leaned forward over the board more so than necessary, her bra visible only to Lena from across the table, she made her first check, which Lena hastily countered with a flustered clearing of her throat. Finally, when Kara complained of a headache from her too tight scrunchy, loosening it from it’s hold and running her fingers through her hair with slow, languid motions…

“And...I believe that would be checkmate,” Kara said, moving her queen diagonally down the board until it was two spaces in the opposite diagonal direction from claiming the king, with no pieces around that could make a legal move to block her. 

Lena blinked, looking away from Kara and her rolled up, partly unbuttoned blouse and flowing blonde locks, and down to the board. 

“I...are you serious? How did-” Lena looked up at Kara in disbelief. “That is the first game I have lost in years.” 

Kara shrugged, a sly smile on her face.

“It appears that you have met your match, Lena Luthor.” 

Kara figured that Lena would have been the super competitive type, and perhaps would have gotten frustrated or even mad at being bested by Kara so quickly. But Kara’s triumph and her smugness about it seemed to have the exact opposite effect on Lena. In fact she looked at her, her eyes darkening and lips curling upwards in a tempting grin, like she might devour her right then and there. And that look made Kara think two things: One, that she really wished this table wasn’t in between them. And two, that there was still a livestream going that they had both completely forgotten about in the heat of competition.

Lena cleared her throat. Kara gripped the collar of her loosened her shirt and rippled the fabric to allow some air in. She was suddenly  _ very _ warm. They both turned to look at the screen again, only to see that the comments were flowing in so fast that they could barely read them. 

_ “Lena. You got played, girl.”  _

_ “Chessmaster/gay disaster Lena Luthor losing to a novice player bc boobs is a MOOD.” _

_ “I know nothing about chess but I know that Kara is fuckin  _ shredded.  _ And Lena clearly noticed...”  _

“Kara,” Lena said cautiously, turning away from the camera. “Were you...distracting me so you could win?” 

“Okay guys that’s all the time we have! Can’t wait for dinner, Lena!” Kara rushed, and ended the livestream before Lena could get too angry with her.

*

Lena seemed to let the whole “I sort of used my womanly wiles as a tool against you to win a chess game” issue go pretty easily. Kara was surprised about this, seeing as she knew just how seriously Lena took her reputation as a world renowned chess player. But she took her defeat graciously, and soon after the live stream was over, the two women had changed into the now-common sweatpants-that-doubled-as-pajamas outfits without another word about Kara’s little  _ strategy _ . 

It was almost embarrassing how much Kara found herself staring at Lena in her flannel pajama pants and university T-shirt. There was nothing inherently eye catching or alluring about Lena in pj’s except for the fact that it was Lena and she looked amazing in anything. But it was the bigger picture of the scenario laid out before Kara that made her stare at Lena adoration. Lena was cooking dinner for Kara, humming along to the music on her phone as she chopped vegetables, her shoulders shimmying slightly with the song, and her wine glass next to her slowly being drained as she worked. Kara's chest tightened with a swell of emotion as she watched Lena. It felt like this was how things were supposed to be. It felt like Kara could stay with Lena exactly like this for the rest of her life. 

A picture appeared in Kara’s head. A fantasy, even. One where she got up from where she sat at the dining room table catching up on some emails, walked through the kitchen, and gripped Lena from behind, softly curling her arms around her waist and kissing her neck she left exposed when she had pulled her hair up into a loose, messy bun. 

The more Kara thought about that image the more she wanted it. And what was so wrong about that, anyway? Why couldn’t she make that little mental image a reality?

Before Kara could talk herself out of it, before she could let the nerves in her stomach move up to her throat and choke her with uncertainty, she was pushing her laptop away from her and walking quickly into the kitchen. Lena was still humming along with the music she was listening to, shifting her weight from one foot to the other in a sort of absent minded dance as she stood facing away from Kara in front of the stove. She was completely at ease in a way Kara wasn’t used to seeing her. Ever. Was this just how she was at home when no one was around? Or was this some wonderful new normal? 

Kara moved to stand behind Lena and snaked her arms carefully around Lena’s stomach, pressing against her back posessively and, in a last second of chickening out on her original idea, pressing a quick kiss on her shoulder before resting her chin in the crook of Lena’s neck. That was a completely normal thing for friends to do, right?

Lena stilled at first, not expecting the sudden affection, before sinking against Kara’s embrace. 

“What’s this for?” Lena asked, stirring the pot on the stove idly, her head tilting back against Kara’s gently. 

Kara shrugged.

“I dunno,” she said. “I’m just really proud of how strong and amazing you are. And how lucky I am to know you. And how glad I am to be here with you.” 

“Oh. Is that all?” 

Kara chuckled into Lena’s hair. 

“Just let me gush for once, would you?” 

Lena turned, leaning against the handle of the oven door and looking up at Kara, her pupils slightly dilated and cheeks flushed. 

“Well. I suppose I can be proud of myself too. I must be a pretty good teacher for you to beat me at chess after just two games.” 

“That’s not what I was referring to. But, to be fair, you are a great teacher,” Kara said. Was it her who moved to keep them pressed close together? Was she the one who slotted their hips together like two puzzle pieces yearning to create something greater than themselves? “And I hope you’re just as good of a cook. Because I’m  _ starving _ .” 

“You could help, you know,” Lena said, eyes flitting down to their connected bodies then back up into Kara’s eyes, arching an eyebrow upwards like a challenge. 

“No can do,” Kara said, “Deal’s a deal. Besides, you cooking is something I need to observe without any interference.” 

“And why is that?” Lena asked, reaching over Kara’s arm to pluck her wine glass from the counter and sip it slowly. 

Kara’s eyes followed the motion, noticing the way the dark red hue of the merlot stained her lips.

“Becuase,” Kara said, trying not to get distracted enough to forget how to speak. “You are already good at too many things and I’m hesitant to believe that you’re a great cook, too.” 

“Kara,” Lena said, putting her glass back down and looking Kara full on in a way that made her stomach flip. “You have no  _ idea _ just how many things I’m good at.” 

Kara was pretty sure that she was going to  _ explode _ in response to that whopper of a line. She had thought that they were just supposed to be flirting for the sake of the camera and the viewers. So what were they doing continuing to push each other like this? There was no way in hell this could be interpreted as anything but flirting, if not full blown  _ seducing _ …

There had, of course, always been an element to Kara and Lena’s friendship that was a little too  _ friendly _ . They both knew it. Hell, they both played into it. It was, like chess, a game of trying to understand the other player’s motivations through careful strategy. Or perhaps it was more like a game of chicken. Each of them seeing how far they could go past the boundaries of friendship until the other blinked. But what was the point of the game? What was considered a victory? Getting the other person to chicken out, or getting the other person to finally just  _ go for it _ ?

The more pressing question was which option would Kara choose right at this moment? Would she just laugh it off and pretend like it was no big deal? That Lena was just being extra rambunctious becuase she was drinking wine on an empty stomach? If she was going to just shrug the moment off, Kara should probably have stopped all but pressing Lena into the stove with her hips. And she definitely shouldn’t have stared at the way Lena licked her lips in anticipation. Or maybe, just this once, Kara wouldn’t just let it go. What if she just... _ finally _ ...

_ And then what? _ An annoying little voice in Kara’s head asked.  _ Sure. Go ahead and have sex with your best friend. That won’t be weird at all. That won’t drastically change, and possibly ruin, your friendship. It  _ certainly _ won’t make the issue of being quarantined together way more complicated. And you  _ definitely _ won’t have to have a conversation directly afterwards about what the new terms of your relationship are. No. This is a great idea, Kara. Not impulsive and reckless at all.  _

Damn it. 

Kara pulled away from Lena suddenly, clearing her throat and turning to the kitchen island to pour herself a glass of wine. The wine wasn’t going to help anything, but the act of pouring it was a way to distract Kara’s hands long enough for the urge she had to put them on Lena’s eager body to recede. 

Kara kept her back turned to Lena while she composed herself. She heard Lena let out a disappointed sigh before she turned back to her cooking. Kara wholeheartedly agreed with the sentiment behind it. 

*

Lena was an excellent cook. Because of-freaking-course she was. Kara found herself moaning appreciatively several times at the dinner table, much to Lena’s apparent delight and dismay. Kara really wasn’t trying to make the tension between them any worse. But when something was  _ that _ good, noises were going to come out of her that she had no control over. 

As Kara did the dishes after dinner, Lena sighed loudly from where she was perched on the kitchen island, polishing off the bottle of wine she had started. 

“I swear I cannot take one more day of being cooped up in this apartment by myself,” Lena groaned. “I never thought I’d miss work this much.” 

“Honestly. I know it’s not what you want to hear. But I would do anything for a whole day off from superhero duty right now.” 

“Well what’s stopping you?” Lena asked. 

Kara shut off the running water and turned to face Lena. 

“What do you mean?” 

“I mean what’s stopping you from taking a day off of being Supergirl? I know things are bad out there, but the world won’t stop spinning just becuase you go off the radar for twenty four measly hours. It’s not like things can get much worse.” 

“ _ Never _ say that,” Kara said with a remorseful groan. Things could  _ always _ get worse.

“Okay. You’re right,” Lena conceded. “I’m just saying, though. If it’s draining you so much to be out there every day, then give yourself a day off. Hang out here with me for a while. I’m sure it would do you a world of good.” 

Kara leaned against the sink, thinking. The idea of a day off sounded amazing. But it also made her feel instantly guilty for even considering it. 

“I can’t,” she said. 

“You can and you will,” Lena insisted. “If nothing else, do it for the sake of my sanity. Please, Kara?” 

Kara bit her lower lip. She didn’t know if it was more thrilling or anxiety inducing to consider spending a whole uninterrupted day with Lena in the confines of her apartment while there was all this...tension happening between them. 

And then Lena gave her an overdramatic and adorable pout, and Kara knew she was done for. 

“Okay. I’ll take a day off tomorrow.” 

“Perfect,” Lena said, so overcome with excitement that she hopped off the kitchen island and planted a kiss right on Kara’s cheek. “I can’t wait.” 

Kara could only sputter out a few nonsensical half sentences as she turned away from Lena and back towards the sink, her cheeks bright crimson. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2 notes: One. I love you guys and you have left such amazing feedback and given so much love for this story, and I can't thank you enough for that. Now since the archive is running a bit differently during quarantine, i can't tell with any level of accuracy how many hits this story is getting per update, so if you want me to know you're still out there and still reading, just give a little kudos if you haven't already and leave a comment. It can literally just be an emoji if you want. I am not picky lol 
> 
> Second: I am trying to give this story as much attention as I can because I know how much you guys need stuff to read right now. But I do manage an organic vegetable farm, and I am drowning in field work right now, so I can only find so much spare time. Because of that, I can't guarantee any kind of update schedule. But I will try to give a heads up on tumblr when I'm working on a new chapter.
> 
> Stay safe. I love yinz.  
> -Tess-


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How we doin, everyone? You hangin in there? Either way, you're doing great, and I love you

After dinner, Kara finally succumbed to her curiosities. That is, she finally decided to go down the rabbit hole of twitter to see what everyone had been saying about her and Lena’s quarantine video series. And Lena, of course, was more than eager to plop down on the couch next to her and follow along with what she was reading. 

It started off innocently enough with a few small online news sources making blurbs about it. 

“Lena Luthor: Tireless Philanthropist and Newfound Vlogger, Proves to be the Only Valid Millionaire as Friend/Lover(?) Kara Danvers Chronicles Their Co-Quarantine” 

“Lena Luthor Opens Up About Her Anxiety During Covid Crisis; and Other Reason You Should Be Watching CatCo’s Quarantine Video Series”

“Gal Pals or Covid Couple? A Synopsis of the Delicious Sexual Tension Pulitzer Prize Winner Kara Danvers and Lena Luthor Are Blessing Us With During Quarantine”

Kara chuckled, shaking her head at the titles. All too long and convoluted from a copy editing standpoint, and all far too ridiculous. 

“Well you were right about one thing. People definitely are responding to the flirting thing.” 

“Told you,” Lena said, pressing a bit closer into Kara’s side so she could read along. 

“I still don’t see why everyone thinks we’re...I mean we’re not that bad, are we?” 

“Kara, you got me to lose a chess game with your boobs.” 

“I...okay, yeah, I did. That didn’t...cross a line or anything, did it?” 

Lena shrugged. 

“I didn’t think so. You have nice boobs. You should let them out more often.” 

“I-” Kara started to say, suddenly flustered by Lena’s straightforward response. “Oh, shut up,” she said, bumping her shoulder into Lena’s teasingly. 

Kara moved on to read some of the replies on CatCo’s links to the videos. Which, for the most part, were innocent enough, saying things like “these two are so cute!”, “Kara’s videos brighten up my day!”, and “why couldn’t I get a gf before covid so I had someone to quarantine with??”. Of course, peppered in between the more PG comments were some responses that Kara would rather not repeat...

People  _ really _ thought she and Lena were an item. And Kara knew that to an extent, Lena was right, and playing into it was just going along with the fun and giving people something fun to distract themselves with. But at what point did feeding the rumors turn into dishonesty? If there was one thing that Kara, as a journalist, valued most, it was honesty. So what was she supposed to do?

*

Another night, another fresh bout of torture. Kara laid in Lena’s bed, alone and with all of the lights on, yet again waiting for Lena to appear from the bathroom and join her. She wasn’t all that surprised to learn that a young, beautiful heiress like Lena had a time consuming bedtime routine. She had seen for herself the vast collection of expensive creams and beauty products in her cabinets. But honestly, what was Lena doing in there that took so long? Was she avoiding coming to bed as long as possible because sharing a bed with Kara made her uncomfortable? She didn’t  _ seem _ uncomfortable about being wrapped up with Kara these past few nights. So what else could it be? 

The bathroom door clicked open gently, and Kara quickly rolled away from the door, hoping Lena might think she was already asleep and not laying their fretting. Friends didn’t get so worked up over sharing a bed with friends. 

Lena cleared her throat softly, perhaps checking to see if Kara was truly asleep. But Kara didn’t stir. She didn’t know why she kept up the fake sleep charade, but she was too stubborn to give it up now. 

“Kara?” Lena asked as she moved towards the bed. 

Kara felt the mattress shift as Lena crawled onto it. 

“Hey. Kara. Can I ask you something?” 

Yeah. Lena wasn’t buying the ‘being asleep' thing. 

Kara turned slowly to face her friend. When she saw her, her heart almost leapt out of her throat. Lena was straddling her side of the bed, the comforter bunched around her knees, and was wearing nothing but an oversized red midriff t-shirt and black lace underwear.

“Oh dear lord,” Kara yelped despite herself, averting her gaze to the ceiling as quickly as possible. “What? What is it?” she asked.

“Sorry. Did I wake you up?” Lena asked innocently, moving to pluck the hair tie from her head and letting her hair fall loose around her shoulders.

_ I’m a good person, _ Kara pleaded to herself, to the gods, to whoever might be listening.  _ I don’t deserve this torture.  _

“Nope,” Kara replied, her voice a high pitched squeak as she struggled to keep her composure. “Not at all. What did you want to ask me?” 

“Just, uh, wanted to know if you thought it was a little warm in here,” Lena replied, eyes shimmering with just enough playfulness to make Kara wonder if she was doing all of this on purpose. 

“I mean, I absorb the sun’s rays to shoot lasers out of my eyes and lift like 3000 times my body weight. So I’m...kind of always warm,” Kara said in a quick ramble.

“Oh. Okay. I’ll turn the heat down, then,” Lena replied. 

_ Please do _ , Kara pleaded inwardly. 

Lena flopped onto the bed, her head hitting the pillow with a soft ‘thwump’ before she reached over for the remote on her nightstand and used it to turn the temperature of the room down by a few degrees. She stayed there a moment, laying on top of the comforter casually, picking at her cuticles for a moment like she was deep in thought. Or maybe waiting for something. 

Kara stayed right where she was, with her hands folded in her own lap on top of the covers, barely even letting herself look at Lena more than was necessary. 

“Okay, well,” Lena said a few moments later with a resigned sigh. “Goodnight.” 

Lena switched off the lights, and they were left in the more forgiving darkness. But Kara wasn’t free of her desires just yet. No. Not when she knew what came next, same as every night since she started quarantining with Lena. 

Lena didn’t start flopping around in bed yet. But Kara assumed she would start at any minute. Or maybe she  _ hoped _ Lena would so that Kara could grab her and pull Lena’s body towards her own for a reason other than becuase she really wanted to. Kara gulped at that thought, considering that Lena wasn’t wearing much of anything, and the concept of curling up against a whole lot of Lena’s bare skin made it feel like the heat in the room had cranked up at least twenty degrees.

Lena shifted, scooting back more towards Kara’s side of the bed like an invitation for her to do what she was already considering.

Ah, screw it.

Kara rolled towards the middle of the bed, pulling her pillow along with her for the trek across the massive mattress because she figured that she would be settling in over there for the night, and tossed an arm over Lena’s bare abdomen. Somehow it felt like her own version of waving a white flag.

Lena let out a quiet hum in response to Kara’s embrace. It made the pit of Kara’s stomach knot up uncomfortably, as did the feeling of Lena’s soft skin under her fingertips, and the rush she felt when Lena moved to press her legs against Kara’s. It was more that Kara could bear. But she didn’t let go. She couldn’t. Not when hanging on to Lena felt like the only good and pure thing in the world right now. 

The room was impossibly silent once they settled against each other. Every other night they had fallen into this new routine, Kara had fallen asleep rather quickly. But now she couldn’t get out of her own head long enough to relax. She tried to find some sort of sound to focus on, something rhythmic and soothing enough to lull her to sleep. And though she had promised herself not to tune into Lena quite so closely anymore, she found herself listening for her heartbeat. It slowed gradually as Lena began to drift off, and it was, as Kara hoped it would be, just what she needed to settle her racing thoughts. That was until Lena shifted like she might roll away, and Kara, thoughtlessly moved her hand to get a better grip on Lena. The result was that Kara’s hand was now farther up Lena’s stomach, just below her breasts, her fingertips lightly digging into Lena’s skin. 

It was basically an accident, and certainly nothing Kara did intentionally. But the second she had moved her grip on Lena’s exposed stomach, she heard Lena’s heartbeat pick up rapidly. So maybe Kara wasn’t the only one who was nervous about all this closeness. The realization was reassuring and thrilling at the same time. There was a certain ego boost to knowing that she could have such an effect on someone as powerful and self assured as Lena with just one touch. It made her hungry with curiosity of what would happen if she put her hands elsewhere…

Ah, crap, Kara bemoaned inwardly as invasive thoughts started to flood her mind. Well, fantasies, more accurately. Fantasies that were vivid, and  _ hot _ , and…

Were not freaking helping her in her resolve to not potentially ruin her friendship just for the sake of getting a little bit of  _ relief _ from the absolute fire burning in the pit of her stomach...

At this rate, Kara might never get to sleep. 

*

Against all odds, Kara did manage to eventually fall asleep. It only took conjuring the memory of every slimy, bad breathed, or generally unhygienic type of alien she had ever had to fight, followed by trying to remember each and every rule outlined in the DEO handbook, to get her calm and distracted from her sleeping partner long enough to do so. 

When Kara stirred again, daylight was streaming through Lena’s bedroom window. But she was a bit remiss to find that she was in the bed alone. Though, considering just how overwhelming it had been to wake up next to Lena these past couple mornings, perhaps this was better. 

The smell of fresh coffee all but possessed Kara, driving her up and out of bed like a cartoon character smelling a freshly baked pie. When she made her way to the kitchen, she found Lena sitting at the kitchen island, biting her thumbnail and staring down at her laptop, her free hand holding her cellphone up to her ear, coffee sitting neglected at her elbow.

“I mean I double checked the coding changes. The machines should be running no problem...Uh huh...so what’s it saying on the display screen?” 

As Lena listened to whoever was on the other end of the call, she turned, finally noticing that Kara was up, and gave her a warm smile and a wink, pointing silently to the coffee pot so Kara would help herself, before turning back to her computer.

“Uh...okay, hang on,” Lena said, beginning to click away aggressively at her keyboard while Kara poured herself a cup of coffee. “Alright, I’m back onto the programming software and it says...oh you little  _ asshole _ ...No! Not you! Always assume I’m addressing the tech when I start swearing. Uhhh…” she made a few more purposeful clicks on her keyboard. “Try it now?” She paused, and then grinned. “Perfect. Call me when the first few come off the production line so I know it’s working. What’s that? Oh. Yeah, don’t worry about transporting them. I’m working on it. I’m just having a bit of a hard time finding a truck to…”

Kara waved, getting Lena’s attention. 

“Hang on,” Lena said, putting the phone down. “What’s up?” 

“What do you need transported?” Kara asked.

“Uh,” Lena said, glancing back at her screen, clearly distracted by all the things going on in her head at once. “PPE equipment and ventilators. I remotely reprogrammed the manufacturing equipment at LCorp to start making medical supplies that the hospitals are running short on.”

Kara blinked. 

“When did you have time to do that?” Kara asked. 

“Kara, what do you think I do all day?” she said with a laugh, and then turned her attention back to her work. “My shop manager is down there overseeing production, but without a way to get all this stuff to the hospitals…”

“I can do it,” Kara said, taking a tentative sip of her coffee, which was delicious, because Lena of course had a professional grade coffee and espresso machine and used only bought the expensive kinds of coffee who’s labels weren’t even in English.

“Oh...Kara, I couldn’t ask you to do that.” 

“Lena,” Kara pressed, crossing her arms to emphasize her own stubbornness. “It will be one hundred times faster and easier if I do it.”

Lena bit her lower lip, considering Kara’s offer. 

“You’re sure?” Lena asked.

“Positive.” 

“Ugh, you’re my favorite,” Lena groaned appreciatively, and picked her phone back up. “Still there? Great. Transport is handled...yeah...Supergirl is gonna take care of it actually...Oh fuck off I am not in a love triangle. Yes I was telling  _ you _ to fuck off,” the chuckle in the back of Lena’s throat suggested that she wasn’t actually as mad as she let on, and that perhaps she had more of a casual working relationship with her employees than Kara would have guessed. “Okay. Thanks again. Bye.” 

Lena let out a relieved sigh when she finally hung up. 

“Manufacturing can only go so fast, so the supplies won’t be ready until tomorrow. I really appreciate your help on this, Kara. You have no idea-” 

Kara held up a hand, gesturing for Lena to stop thanking her so much.

“Come on. Like I wouldn’t want to help you be the most selfless and generous person in the world. And it’s great publicity for you  _ and _ Supergirl, ya know?” 

Lena hesitated. 

“Actually, I was planning on making the donations anonymous. The only people who know about it are you and the shop manager. So I would appreciate it if you didn’t tell anyone these actually came from LCorp.” 

“Wha-Lena! Come on!” Kara protested.

“I mean it, Kara. I don’t want the attention. And honestly? People might not trust the equipment if they knew where it came from. So just...let everyone call Supergirl the savior one more time. Please?” 

Kara wanted to argue, but she knew it wouldn’t be any use. No one would ever know just how much Lena did to help. But Kara knew. So she didn’t hesitate to close the distance between them and give Lena one of her signature suffocating hugs, complete with a big sloppy kiss on her cheek. 

“You know I love you, right?” Kara asked. 

Lena chuckled, squirming in Kara’s tight embrace. 

“Yes, yes. I know,” she said with an overly dramatic sigh. “Are you done trying to squeeze me to death?” 

“Not quite,” Kara said, getting one more squeeze in before she finally released Lena. “So! Besides saving lives like the hero you are, what do you have on your schedule for today?” 

“Honestly? Not a damn thing.” 

“Really?” 

“Really. You see why I’ve been going so crazy?” 

Kara frowned, moving to sit next to Lena at the kitchen island and retrieving her cup of coffee from the table. 

“Yeah. Yeah, I do.” 

*

Kara and Lena had breakfast together, and then tried to watch some television. But even with the seemingly endless amount of channels Lena had, it seemed like the only thing that was on was depressing news stories about the outbreak. So that plan didn’t last long. They then tried to watch a movie, but Lena and Kara’s tastes in cinema were apparently  _ very _ different. Lena liked odd indie films that Kara could barely understand the plot of, and Kara was in the mood to watch romance films for no particular reason... Which would have been fine, if Lena didn’t apparently have a habit of mercilessly picking apart their plot lines.

“I’m just saying,” Lena said after Kara had gotten offended by her distaste of The Notebook. “In real life she would have picked the successful guy that her family liked.” 

“But she didn’t love him as much!” Kara said exasperatedly. 

“Her and that other guy argued all the time! That’s not love!” 

“Ugh,” Kara said, flopping back against the couch in defeat. “They were  _ passionate _ . You don’t think there should be passion in a relationship?” 

Lena gave Kara a sideways glance. 

“You not knowing the difference between passion and drama explains a lot about your dating history.” 

“I-hey!” Kara gasped, tossing a throw pillow in Lena’s direction in protest. “I would not talk about ‘dramatic relationships’ if I were you.” 

Lena easily could have gotten annoyed with Kara for that, but she laughed instead, usually a pretty good sport when it came to Kara teasing her.

“Fair enough. Does that mean we both need to improve our skills at picking romantic partners?” 

  
Kara shook her head. 

“Come on, Lena. You make it sound like car shopping or something. Relationships aren’t something you decide on. They just...happen. You know?” 

Lena tilted her head in confusion. 

“I mean, I never enter into a relationship without collecting as much data as I can about the person and whether they would add adequate benefit or not.” 

Kara blinked. 

“You’re kidding, right?” she asked. 

“Only a little bit, that’s the thing,” Lena said, cracking a smile. “Why, what’s wrong with that?” 

“I mean,” Kara began to say, scooching closer to Lena on the couch. “Nothing, really. I just...I don’t think that love is something you can apply logic to. You certainly shouldn’t have to  _ deliberate _ over it. If you  _ want _ someone,” she said, so wrapped up in trying to find the right words that she didn’t realize she had been leaning in closer and closer to Lena as she spoke. “I mean  _ really _ want someone. It should make you feel like you’ll go crazy if you don’t  _ do _ something about it. You know? Like if you go one more day being around them without being able to…” Kara finally looked up to meet Lena’s gaze only to find that they were mere inches apart. She gulped. “...to touch them. You’ll just...burst. You know what I mean?” 

Kara watched, transfixed, as Lena’s neck muscles clenched in response and she licked her lips before speaking. 

“I think I’m starting to,” Lena replied breathlessly.

_ Oh, shit. Oh shit, oh shit, oh- _

“Are you hungry?” Kara suddenly blurted out. “I’m  _ starving _ . I’m gonna grab a snack, you want anything?” 

“I  _ want _ ,” Lena struggled, before she seemed to finally catch her breath purely for the sake of sighing regrettably at Kara. “Something sweet.”

“Cookies it is!” Kara said, leaping off the couch and towards the kitchen.

When she got to the kitchen, Kara gripped the countertop so hard she nearly broke the thick marble. What was  _ wrong _ with her? Lena was her best friend. Why couldn’t she keep herself from trying to ? 

Kara could only pray that Lena wasn’t able to see her desperately trying to contain her horniness through a series of breathing exercises in her kitchen…

“Kara? Everything okay?” Lena asked from the living room. 

_ It is absolutely not okay. My hormones are trying to ruin my friendship,  _ Kara thought.

“Yep! Totally fine!” Kara said, voice shaky. “Oreos or girl scout cookies?” 

She heard Lena let out another sigh.

“Both. And remind me to blame you when I can’t fit out my front door when this is all over.”

“Noted!” Kara said, grabbing every snack she could fit in her grip and bringing them back to the living room. 

She couldn’t try to make out with her best friend if her mouth was always full of snacks, right? 

“So, what should we watch next?” Lena asked, now laying on the couch in a way that forced Kara to dump her collection of snacks on the coffee table so she could lift Lena’s legs up and out of her way to sit down. She only slung them back over Kara’s lap once she had settled back into her seat. “Something else from your collection of romance films?” 

“No,” Kara burst. “Definitely not.” 

*

“ _ Ugh _ ,” Kara groaned, sitting upside down on the couch, her feet slung over the back of the couch and her head hanging off the edge of the cushion. “I’m so  _ bored _ . I’m going insane. How are you not going insane?” 

“Hmm?” Lena asked, looking up from her book to see Kara in her agony. “What, you didn’t like the book I gave you?” 

“I finished it already,” Kara said, gesturing to the copy of Wuthering Heights laying on the floor next to her head. 

Lena scrunched up her nose in confusion. 

“But I just gave it to-oh right. That superspeed of yours.”

“I tried to pace myself. But then I got annoyed by how  _ awful _ the characters are. So I kind of rushed through trying to find a happy ending. But there wasn’t one!”

“Yeah. That’s Emily Bronte for you.” 

“And why did the narrator have literally nothing to do with the story? I figured he’d tie in  _ some _ way in the end, but  _ no _ . He’s just a random traveler that everyone tells their life stories to for no reason!” 

Lena chuckled at Kara’s frustration, still trying to focus on her own reading. 

Kara hauled herself back into an upright position, restless. She slithered over to Lena’s side of the couch and towards her lap until she popped her head up between Lena’s arms so she could, rather invasively, see what she was reading. 

“What’s this one about?” Kara asked.

“Jesus, you’re worse than a puppy,” Lena said with a laugh at Kara’s need for attention, rearranging herself so she held onto her book with one hand and draped the other one on the couch behind Kara. “It’s a...love story, I guess.” 

“Wow. And here you were picking on me for my taste in movies.”

“I hold true to that criticism,” Lena replied. “This story is more believable. You really can feel that the characters love each other.” 

Kara repositioned herself so her head was resting in Lena’s lap. She looked up at Lena expectantly. 

“Go on,” Kara said.

“Are you sure you don’t just want to read it for yourself? It will only take you what, five minutes?” 

Kara rolled her eyes playfully.

“I could. But I’d rather you tell it to me.” 

Lena shook her head, trying to hide a flustered smile. 

“Kara, it’s a romance novel, that’s not something you  _ narrate. _ It’s something you read privately.” 

“Have I heard of it?” Kara asked. 

“Not unless you’re familiar with lesbian literature.” 

Kara blinked. 

“I mean…” Kara struggled. “Alex has a few that she wanted me to borrow but I never got around to it.” 

“Why not?” 

Suddenly it felt like this conversation wasn’t about books.

“I don’t...I don’t know. Maybe I wasn’t sure if I’d like them or not.” 

“Well there’s only one way to find out.” 

What did  _ that _ mean?

“Anyway, I think you’d like this one,” Lena continued. “The characters start off as friends. Really good friends. And at some point the main character realizes she wants them to be more than that. But she doesn’t know if she should go for it. because she can’t imagine living her life without her friend. And if she were to cross that line and it didn’t work out, or her friend didn’t feel the same way...it would crush her, but at the same time she wants her so  _ badly _ that…” Lena cleared her throat, setting the book down. “Like I said. You can read it for yourself if you want.”

Kara gulped. Yeah. She definitely thought she could relate to that story. And considering Lena’s interest in the topic, perhaps she did as well? Did that mean that…

Kara’s phone began to buzz in her pocket. Becuase why the hell not at a time like this, right? Kara groaned and picked it up, still keeping her head in Lena’s lap becuase it felt like something important was happening between them and she wasn’t about to abandon it completely.

“Hi, Cat,” she said woefully, putting the phone on speaker and setting it on the coffee table so Lena could share in her pain. “How’s quarantine treating you?” 

“ _ What are you doing right now? _ ” Cat asked. 

“Uh, nothing. As usual. Well, not nothing. I was reading a book with Lena.” 

_ “Really? Mind if I get a picture of that?”  _

“Why,  _ Cat _ ,” Lena piped up suddenly in a scandalized tone of voice. “You know how this works. We’ll show you ours if you show us yours.” 

“ _ What _ ?” Cat replied, voice outraged.  _ “Who is that? Is that Lena speaking? _

Kara all but fell off of the couch laughing. 

“Yeah, it’s me,” Lena said casually. “Kara is the giggling you hear.” 

_ “Well, if you two would grow up for a moment, you’d know I meant that I’d like it if Kara posted a couple of pictures of your activities on Instagram.” _

“Whoa, hey,” Kara said, laying back into Lena’s lap again. It was just so  _ comfortable _ . “You mean my personal Instagram? That was not a part of the deal.” 

_ “Kara. First of all, I all but own you as per your creative rights contract with CatCo, so don’t push me. Second,” _ Kara could hear the all too familiar sound of Cat sipping on a glass of wine in the middle of the day. “ _ You and I both know you’ve gained a considerable amount of followers on your social media platforms since you and Lena started your little show.” _

It was true. After the first couple of livestreams, Kara noticed a trend of getting a ton of new instagram followers with each new video. Kara was used to her personal social media being relatively public, seeing as she was a Pulitzer winning journalist and all. But this felt a lot more  _ involved _ . People weren’t following her because they recognized her name from a byline of a story, they followed her because they were seeing her life behind closed doors with her friend and they wanted to see more.

“ _ And you know me, Kara, _ ” Cat continued, “ _ I am a woman who wishes to give our subscribers what they want. And they want to see more of you and your little sugar mama. So- _ ” 

“Oh are we talking about sugar mommas, Cat?” Lena interrupted. “Because I know several of your former  _ toys _ .” 

Cat went silent for a moment. Kara wasn’t sure if she was amused beyond belief at this battle of the millionaires or terrified of losing her job from Lena’s flippant comments. 

_ “Just be more active on social media, Kara...please.”  _

Cat hung up without another word, leaving Kara speechless. 

“Did she just say please? You need to handle calls from my boss more often.” 

“It’s just one of my many duties as a sugar momma.” 

Kara cackled, mostly becuase that was just such a ridiculous suggestion that Kara couldn’t even be offended by it. 

“Well, we may as well get this out of the way before she gets too agitated,” Kara said, grabbing her phone from off the coffee table and snapping a quick selfie of the two of them, Kara still laying in Lena’s lap, Lena looking down at the camera with a shy grin, using her book to shield her face slightly. 

“Okay,” Kara said, filling in the caption ‘story time’ with a wink emoji and posting it. “So what now?” 

“Now,” Lena said, putting her book down and leaning against the armrest so she could look at Kara properly. “I turn you asking what we’re going to do next into a drinking game. I’m behind by about a dozen shots.”

“Oh, are we drinking already? I can get on board with that.” 

“Of course  _ you _ can, it doesn’t affect you. I, however, would rather not be trashed by the time we start the livestream. Speaking of, what are we doing today?” 

“Ugh, I don’t know,” Kara groaned, rolling further into Lena until her face was pressed slightly into her stomach. “I probably should have thought about it before now. Any ideas?” 

“Not a one.” 

“Ack,” Kara said, rolling back onto her back to think. “Oh! I know! Alex!”

“What about her?” Lena asked. 

“We can video chat with her and Kelly! Drag them into the internet mania with us. Which,” Kara said, glancing at her phone and seeing that there were already a few dozen comments of the picture of her and Lena. Some of which were…interesting. “There is plenty to spare. I gotta disable the comments on my Instagram.” 

“That you do,” Lena said, eyes going wide as she looked over Kara’s shoulder at some of the more suggestive comments under the picture of the two of them.

“Alright, well, I’ll go call her and ask if she’s up for it.” 

Lena gave her a look, perhaps wondering why Kara was getting up and leaving the room to call her sister when up until now she had always tried to include Lena in their chats as much as possible, since she missed Alex and Kelly almost as much as Kara did. But there was something on Kara’s mind she needed to talk about that she’d rather Lena not overhear.

“ _ Hey, sis, _ ” Alex said through a yawn when she answered the phone. She had really gotten into midday naps lately.  _ “You hook up with Lena yet?”  _

“Alex!” Kara hissed, as she shut the door to Lena’s walk in closet behind her, figuring it was the most private place in the apartment. And no, the irony of where she chose to talk to Alex about her dilemma with Lena was not lost on her. “That is not funny! Put Kelly on!” 

_ “Oh, come on! I can be mature about this. I can, really.”  _

“Nope. You lost your phone privileges. Put Kelly on, please.” 

_ “Ugh, fine. Hang on.” _

There was a shuffling sound, followed by a grumbling as Alex handed off the phone.

“ _ Hey, Kara, _ ” Kelly said in an expectant but reassuring tone, more than used to being Kara’s soundboard when she needed someone to talk to who wasn’t as mouthy and sarcastic as her sister. “ _ What’s going on? _ ” 

“I’m losing my  _ mind _ , that’s what’s going on” Kara whined, dramatically laying down on the floor beneath Lena’s vast selection of designer dresses and gripping the fabric of one of them between her fingers. Even in here, Lena was all around her. Her clothes, her perfume, her lingerie tucked carefully away in the drawer directly to Kara’s left… “It’s too much, Kelly.  _ Too much _ .” 

_ “I’m gonna need you to use more words than that, Kara.”  _

“Okay,” Kara said, letting out a firm exhale. “So. I didn’t really think this whole thing through.”

_ “Ya think?” _ she heard Alex exclaim from the background of the call. 

“Oh shut the fu- _ anyway _ ,” Kara pressed, “It’s just that...I love Lena so much. So much that it...hurts sometimes. And I-I can’t mess this up, Kelly. I’m gonna ruin everything. I-”

_ “Kara?”  _ Kelly asked gently.  _ “Why do you think you’ll ruin things with Lena?”  _

“ _ Becuase _ . She’s my best friend, Kelly! But I don’t want to be just...that...with her anymore. And I don’t know what to do becuase I don’t know what  _ she _ wants. Or maybe I do know. But if I’m right, and if she wants what I want...” Kara found herself getting up and pacing in the closet as she spoke, pulling out outfits at random and considering them. “It’s just...There are procedures for this kind of thing, you know? If you want to date someone you, I dunno, ask them out, and then you go on a date, and get sweaty palms over dinner becuase you really want to hold their hand but you’re too nervous, and maybe you…” 

Kara found herself in front of Lena’s collection of perfumes, taking the stopper off of one of them and bringing it to her nose. She remembered the last time she wore this particular one. Kara had accompanied Lena to a charity fundraiser. She even remembered the dress Lena had worn. God her cleavage had been  _ magnificent _ . 

“Maybe you kiss at the end of the date,” Kara continued in her panicked ramble. “Or maybe you chicken out and wait until hopefully the next date. You know, normal dating stuff. But I can’t  _ do _ any of those things because I am stuck in this apartment. With Lena.  _ Constantly _ .” 

_ “Well...I mean,”  _ Kelly said slowly.  _ “Staying at her apartment during quarantine was your idea.” _

“Thank you, Kelly. I  _ know _ ,” Kara said dryly. “And on top of all of this, there are like, hundreds of people actively watching us dance around our, or at least  _ my _ , attraction to my best friend. And between Lena wanting to play it up on the livestream and Cat pushing us to post more and more online...I feel like I’m losing my mind, Kelly. I’m-” At some point Kara had made her way to the jewelry and had started trying on bracelets and trinkets of Lena’s without even realizing it. “I’m hiding in my best friend’s closet and touching all of her stuff like a crazy person.” Kara sighed. “Okay. I need to get my shit together.”

_ “You’re in Lena’s closet?”  _

“Yep.” 

Kara didn’t have to have super hearing to hear Kelly muffle a laugh away from the phone’s mic. 

“Rude,” Kara said. 

_ “I know. I’m sorry. But listen, Kara. You were having romantic, or at least sexual feelings for Lena before you started cohabitating with her, correct?”  _

“No! I...well, yeah. Maybe.”

_ “Okay. So it’s understandable to feel a little flustered with all of the uninterrupted one on one time with her. But I guess I have to ask you, what do you realistically want to happen next?”  _

“I want, ugh, I  _ want _ ,” Kara whined, hopping around the closet in helpless anxiety as those pesky and steamy thoughts about Lena started pushing their way back into her mind. “I want things I shouldn’t want from my best friend, Kelly!” 

_ “Well why not?”  _

“I-” Kara stopped, thrown off by Kelly’s question even though it was pretty straightforward. “I don’t know. Because what if it doesn’t end well?” 

_ “And what if it does?”  _

Kara bit her lower lip. It would be freaking  _ amazing _ if it did. But- 

“I just wish I knew what she wanted. I mean, I feel like she wants the same thing I do. But I don’t know if she’s as hesitant about doing something about it as I am. Especially now while we’re living together. It makes things so much more complicated...Hey! Maybe you guys can help!” 

_ “No!”  _ Alex piped up again.  _ “Not getting involved!”  _

“Oh, come on! Listen, I needed something to do for the livestream anyway. If we can do a video call with you guys tonight, you can help me figure out if Lena is, I dunno, up for…stuff. Or if I should wait until this whole thing is finally over to try and ask her out.” 

_ “Ugh, God,” _ Alex groaned. “ _ Sure, Kara. Me and Kelly would be glad to help you get laid.”  _

“Great, thanks!” 

_ “I was being sarcastic!”  _

“Too late, you already agreed! See you guys tonight!” 

Kara hung up before Alex could further protest, and exited Lena’s closet with a newfound energy. 

This was a great plan. It made total sense. It definitely made more sense than just asking Lena what she wanted, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Lena, coming to bed in nothing but a tshirt and lingerie*: Kara is it hot in here?  
> Kara: I just wish I knew what she wanted...
> 
> Yes, I know how ridiculous Kara not going for it yet is. But that's half the fun, right? 
> 
> I have never gotten so many comments on a fic in my entire writing career (career? is that the word?). So, THANK YOU. You guys continue to make me so happy and motivated to write when I would otherwise be laying on my couch just WISHING I COULD DO ANYTHING OTHER THAN LAY ON MY COUCH. 
> 
> PS if anyone has any good wlw book recs, lemme know. I need audiobooks for when I'm in the greenhouse
> 
> Stay safe. Love yinz,  
> Tess


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I reworked this chap like 4 times and still am not completely happy with it, but things are happening either way so, here ya go XD

“Lena, do you know how to display the other side of the video call to the broadcast so the viewers can see it?” 

Lena didn’t respond. Kara looked up from the screen to see her arms folded, looking at her incredulously. 

“Oh yeah, duh, tech genius,” Kara said with a chuckle, realizing her error. “Mind giving me a hand?” 

Lena seemed to consider Kara’s request for a second, long enough for Kara to consider her outfit choice, and how she was lowkey obsessed with it. Lena’s hair was down, in loose, tamed waves. A form fitting black camisole clung to her breasts and guided the eye straight down to her tight black jeans, the only thing punctuating their seamlessness being an open button-down blue shirt that barely clung to her shoulders. Kara thought, not for the first time, that she ought to spend her time stuck with Lena creating an Instagram account or something dedicated purely to the worship of her wardrobe choices and how they complimented her curves so phenomenally...

Lena moved to stand next to Kara where she sat at the kitchen table with her laptop, leaning over her to take control of the keyboard. Kara tried not to let her eyes wander to Lena’s cleavage as she clacked away on the keys, but after all, they were  _ right _ there. And on top of that, the smell of Lena’s perfume assaulted Kara’s senses with it’s vanilla and sandalwood perfection. 

_ Don’t look at her boobs, Kara. Don’t look, don’t look, don’t- _

She looked. 

“And, we’re live!” Lena said triumphantly, and Kara turned away from Lena’s chest as quickly as she could, feeling her face go hot and hoping no one noticed. There usually wasn’t anyone watching the first minute or so of the livestreams, anyhow. So there’s no way that…

A comment popped up on the side of the screen.

_ “We saw that, Kara,”  _ it said.

Kara glared at the screen and her annoyingly attentive viewers, sticking her tongue out for just a second before sliding into her video personality. 

“Hey, everyone out there!” She said gleefully. “How are we all holding up? Good? Not good? Going stir crazy and drowning in existential dread and shared global trauma?” Kara sighed heavily. “Yeah. Me too. But it’s okay! Because we are in this together. And speaking of together-” 

Lena pulled her stool up next to Kara so she was in the shot of the camera, but not before she set down a glass of wine in front of each of them. 

“Ooh, thank you,” Kara said offhandedly. At some point it had become a casual new normal for Lena to bring Kara a drink or a snack when she was at her laptop without her having to ask. “So, I genuinely couldn't think of something to do for today’s video,” she continued. “Because,  _ frankly _ , I am running out of ideas. But! Then I thought about how much I’ve been missing my sister lately, and I thought, why not include you guys in on a family video call? You see every other aspect of our lives at this point, so, you may as well see that, too, right?” 

Kara’s gaze flicked over to the comments. 

_ “Oh so we’re not gonna talk about Lena reading Kara lesbian literature while she sat in her lap earlier???”  _

“Whoa, hang on, how do you guys know what book-” Kara began.

“You can see the title in the picture,” Lena supplied with a casual shrug, holding up her phone so Kara could see the post. “It’s a good book, by the way,” she said to the camera. “Highly recommend.” 

“And I highly recommend using Lena as a pillow,” Kara countered smugly. “She’s super comfy. Now! If we’re done being  _ nosy _ , let’s call Alex!” 

Alex didn’t pick up the call right away. She seemed determined to undermine Kara’s reputation to her viewers. Or maybe she had simply gotten distracted, seeing as when she answered the call her hair was a little bit fluffed up and a shade of lipstick that usually only Kelly wore was stained on her bottom lip. 

Not that Kara had given them a specific time or anything to ensure she wasn’t interrupting their...fun. Still, at least someone was having  _ fun _ . 

“Hey,” Alex said as unenthusiastically as humanly possible. “Kelly!” she called out. “Kara’s doing the thing. You decent?” 

“Alex, are you drunk?” Kara asked.

“Nope. Working on it, though,” Alex said, gesturing to a mostly full glass of whiskey with ice. 

“Mood,” Lena said, picking up her wine glass. 

“Hey! Cheers, Luthor!” Alex said, bringing her glass up to the camera before taking a sip out of it, which Lena mirrored with her own wine glass. 

Kelly appeared on screen, seeming to make some last minute adjustments to her disheveled clothing before sitting next to Alex with a satisfied looking smile. 

Yeah, and Alex had the nerve to lecture Kara about not wanting to see her and Lena’s quarantine frivolities...

“So, to everyone watching who might not know,” Kara pushed through, “This is my sister, Alex Danvers.”

“Special Agent Alex Danvers, thank you very much,” Alex interrupted.

  
“Really? We’re in that kind of a mood?” Kara asked.

“Ayup,” Alex said, smugly sipping her whiskey. 

“Fine,” Kara groaned, “ _Special Agent_ Alex Danvers and her girlfriend Kelly Olsen! Or would you prefer Dr. Olsen?” 

“God, no. I’m not that full of myself.” 

Alex shot Kelly a look. Kelly and Kara shared an internet delayed chuckle. 

“Maybe not,” Alex retorted, “but you know what you  _ were _ full of just a couple minutes ago?”

“Whoa! No! Lalalalalalala!” Kara burst, sticking her fingers in her ears to drown out Alex and whatever dirty thing she was about to say. “This is a PG video series, Alex!” 

“You don’t know what I was going to say!” Alex retorted, but dropped the innocent act when Kelly gave her a look. “Yeah, okay. I just wanted to freak Kara out.” 

As Kara shook off the threat of mental pictures of her sister and Kelly doing...things...the comments were starting to blow up, as the viewers seemed to be utterly  _ enthralled _ with Alex.

_ “So you’re telling us Kara had an equally hot, even gayer sister, and we’re just now seeing her???” _

_ “Kara, do you and Alex go to the same crossfit gym or something becuase godDAMN!”  _

_ “Danvers sisters...more like DAMNvers sisters! Alex is so JACKED I’m WEAK”  _

“What?” Kara scoffed in response to the comments. “Alex is not  _ jacked _ .” 

Alex, who was, to her credit, wearing a tank top instead of her usual circulation of the same five or so t-shirts over and over, as was her new quarantine look, did appear more slightly more fit than usual. But that was just how Alex looked, which to Kara was so familiar that she didn’t even really think about it. 

“I am, too!” Alex argued. “I installed a chin up bar in the hallway and everything. Seeing as I can’t go to the damn gym.” 

“You mean  _ I _ installed the chin up bar,” Kelly corrected with a laugh. “You threw it together without reading the instructions and nearly broke it  _ and _ the walls on the first try.” 

“You’re not wrong. But this is another reason why you would be so bored without me around,” Alex said with a silly grin, leaning in towards Kelly until she conceded to give her a quick peck on the lips. 

“Alex, can you not be that one jerk who uses quarantine as an excuse to get in better shape and be generally productive as hell?” Lena asked. “It makes the rest of us look bad.”

“Nope, not possible,” Alex said smugly. “Want me to give you some home workout tips?” 

“Oh, we could do a workout video soon!” Kara piped up. 

“Ugh, I’m surrounded by  _ monsters _ ,” Lena groaned. 

Meanwhile, the comments had somehow inexplicably spiraled into what Kara could only guess were Chuck Norris themed jokes aimed at herself and Alex. 

_ “Alex Danvers sleeps with a pillow under her gun.” _

_ “The Danvers sister got Coronavirus and now Coronavirus is quarantined…”  _

_ “A bulletproof vest wears the Danvers Sisters for protection.” _

Kara wanted to say something snarky in response to the antics in the comments, but no one would have been able to hear her over Lena’s uncontrollable laughter as she read them. 

“Which one got you?” Kara asked her companion. 

“‘Superman wears Kara Danvers pajamas’,” Lena replied through near tears, pointing it out to Kara on the screen. 

“He might! You don’t know!” Kara replied, beginning to chuckle herself just becuase Lena’s laugh was infectious. And because that one hit a little too close to home to not be funny.

Kelly shook her head at the two giggling girls on the other side of the video call.

“Well it  _ looks _ like you guys are getting along well enough since you quarantined together,” she said with a wry smile. 

“Of course we are, why wouldn’t we?” Lena asked, her laughter finally receding as she wiped a tear from her eye. 

“I mean, you guys are both used to living alone. Has sharing a space disrupted your routines at all?” Kelly asked.

“My routine,” Lena said wryly. “Is staying at the office from sunup to sundown and only being in my apartment to sleep.  _ If _ I don’t just fall asleep on my office couch. So there’s no way Kara could make the disruption of my schedule any worse.” 

“Yeah, and I was never a big fan of living alone, anyway,” Kara said with a loving nudge of the shoulder against Lena. “So I think it’s great.” 

“You’re not a big fan of sitting  _ still _ , either,” Alex said. “Has she been making you nuts, Lena?” 

“Oh, she’s definitely making me feel insane,” Lena replied. “But not for the reasons you’re thinking.”

Lena punctuated her answer with an arch of her eyebrow and a casual sip from her wine glass. 

Kara’s face scrunched up in response. She grabbed her cell phone and tapped out a quick message to Alex. 

_ “What do you think that meant???”  _ Kara texted. 

“I remember when,” Alex continued to say, “we would do something stupid to get grounded together. God, she was  _ intolerable _ to be stuck with in the house for a weekend, let alone two whole weeks.” Alex blinked and looked down at her phone sitting next to her on the end table of their couch, grabbing it. “Although, at this point, I feel like this whole shit fest is gonna be  _ way _ longer than two weeks,” she said passively as she tapped away on her phone.

Kara’s phone buzzed. 

_ “It means she’s got blue balls, dumbass” _ the text said.

Kara nearly choked on her wine. She heard Alex’s muffled laugh through her laptop speaker. 

“I don’t want to even think about the possibility of an indefinite lockdown yet,” Lena murmured, oblivious to the Danvers sister’s antics. 

_ “Do you have to be so crass all the time?”  _ Kara texted.

“But that just means more time with me!” Kara said aloud, turning away from her phone to give Lena a beaming smile. “And we’re avoiding the topic of Alex and Kelly suddenly sharing a place, too. How is that going?” 

“Besides definitely not getting my security deposit back from haphazardly installed workout equipment?” Kelly asked. “Pretty good, actually.” 

“Yeah, it’s like a trial run for when we officially move in together,” Alex added confidently. 

“Oh?” Lena asked, interest piqued. “Is that a thing that’s happening?” 

“Maybe,” Kelly replied, suddenly shy. 

Kara’s phone buzzed. 

_ “Ya I do. Cuz it makes u spit ur wine out in front of a live audience. Which amuses me” _

Kara rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, I think this whole quarantine thing will affect a lot of relationships,” Alex said aloud. “Couples deciding to move in together. Straight couples getting knocked up. Best friends hooking up because they’re horny…” 

Kara felt her jaw tense. She has asked Alex to help her with Lena, not to be an unsubtle  _ asshole _ . Kara glanced over to Lena, trying to gauge her reaction. Lena only shrugged.

“Sounds like fun to me,” she said, her tone and physicality completely neutral save for a small, devilish smile and a quick look in Kara’s direction. 

Kara’s eyes went wide. She pulled out her phone again to text Alex. 

_ “????????”  _

“Thank God I’m not single during all of this,” Kelly chimed in. “You have to have  _ something _ to relieve the stress, you know? And orgasms are proven to...”

“Ack! Okay! I get it,” Kara said with a grimace. “You and _my_ _sister_ are having a great time.” 

Alex looked smug as all hell. Especially when Kara heard her phone buzz and checked to see what she had texted her.

_ “Do u think Lena is a top or a bottom? My vote is top. Have fun with that”  _

Kara felt her face turn a bright crimson as she pushed her phone away from her, trying very hard not to picture that exact scenario...

“You okay over there, Kara?” Lena asked.

“Hmm?” Kara asked. “Yeah. Fine. Why?” 

“I dunno you look...bothered.” 

Kara cleared her throat.

“Must be the wine. The tannins make me flushed,” she explained away quickly.

“You know, I didn’t think about it until now,” Alex said, showing no sign of cutting Kara a break anytime soon. Careful what you wish for, right? “But I imagine it would be difficult to get any... _personal_ _time,_ if you know what I mean, while you’re stuck in your apartment with a quarantine-mate, wouldn’t it?”

“ _ God _ , yeah,” Lena said.

She had spoken in a low groan, like it was more of a knee jerk, guttural reaction to Alex’s query than a thought out response. And perhaps she had only said it because she forgot about the live audience aspect of the video call, seeing as her eyes went wide at her own response the second it left her lips. 

“I mean,” Lena countered to herself. “Uh, you know. It’s not something I do a  _ lot _ . But, I, uh…” She sighed, conceding to her slip up. “I  _ am _ human.” 

The group was silent for a moment, entirely unsure of what to say after Lena accidentally confessed to all of them that she masturbates. 

“Ugh,” Lena said behind her wine glass. “I can’t wait to see what the media does with  _ that _ little snippet.”

“Hey, it’s not a big deal,” Kara jumped, instinctively needing to stick up for Lena, only after she had made a point to text a string of middle finger emojis to Alex. “We all do it.” 

Lena turned her head quickly toward Kara, an eyebrow quirked upwards with piqued interest. 

“Oh really?” she asked. 

_ Ah, crap, _ Kara thought.  _ I walked right into that one.  _

“Well, I mean, not  _ lately _ . Not  _ here _ .” 

It was true. Kara had felt too uncomfortable away from the privacy of her own apartment to... _ take care of things _ ...since she had come to live with Lena. And that definitely hadn’t helped with the issue of her attraction to Lena. How was she supposed to restrain herself if she couldn’t get any relief?

“Really? Why not?” Lena asked with genuine curiosity. 

“Wha-” Kara began, adjusting her glasses and laughing nervously. “What do you mean ‘why not’? I’m not gonna...do  _ that _ in my friend’s apartment! It’s just...too weird.” 

“I don’t think it’s weird at all. I wouldn’t mind if you did,” Lena said, her tone so casual and unaffected despite the subject of conversation that Kara felt herself reeling in confusion.

“Right, yeah, why would that be weird?” Alex interrupted, polishing off her drink like she needed all the alcohol she could get in order to bear the current topic of conversation, despite the fact that it was entirely her fault. “It’s not like you two have ever understood the concept of boundaries. You dated the same guy, for fuck’s sake.” 

“Alex! Language!” Kara scolded.

“Oh my  _ God,”  _ Lena said, shaking her head. “I literally forget that even happened. Like, all the time.” 

“We didn’t even date!” Kara argued. “There was like, not even half a date before I realized it was a bad idea.” 

“You were in love with him for a year!” Alex teased. 

“Yeah, and now you’re dating his sister! So! Don’t lecture me about boundaries.” 

“I-” Alex started to try and retort, but went silent. 

“We kind of have a fucked up friend group dynamic, don’t we?” Kelly said after a beat.

“Little bit, yeah,” Lena said, and all four of the women shared a long, unsettled sip of their respective drinks. 

Kara couldn’t even make herself look at the comments that were rolling in. She could only  _ imagine _ . 

“Can we please talk about something else?  _ Anything _ else?” Kara pleaded.

“Oh, I know,” Lena piped up. “Kelly, you already mentioned, well, one thing you can do to relieve stress. But since you’re the expert, mind giving anyone watching any other tips on how to manage their pandemic related anxieties?” 

“Of course!” Kelly said, her voice already shifting into that more clinical tone she developed when she was in therapist mode, not noticing Alex as she tapped away on her phone. 

_ “Well, I think u have ur answer”  _ she texted to Kara. 

Kara frowned at her phone, pushing her glasses back up her nose. 

_ “What???? Nuh uh! Unless I missed something??” _

“So one of the key things to keep in mind is that you need to set a limit of how much information and news you consume on a day to day basis,” Kelly said. “Outside of the basic news and guidelines from health officials, a lot of what is being reported is intended to get a reaction that makes you think you need to keep reading or watching. And that reaction they seek is typically fear or worry.”

“See?” Kara said to Lena as she subtly waited for Alex to respond. “What did I say about watching the news nonstop!” 

“You are a journalist, shouldn’t you be strictly pro-news?” Lena scoffed to her. 

Kara’s phone buzzed again.

_ “Kara I s2g...she just told u she wants u to get off in her apt?? After voicing her own sexual frustration, and saying it would be FUN to hook up with a FRIEND during quarantine. I fking...LITERALLY...cannot spell this out any clearer for u: Lena. Wants. To. Fuck.”  _

Kara gulped. When she put it  _ that _ way…

“The other thing that’s important is keeping in touch with loved ones. Like we’re doing right now. Isolation has terrible effects on your mental health,” Kelly continued, reminding Kara that there were still things happening outside of her own gay(?) panic. 

_ “I dunno, Alex,”  _ Kara texted. _ “I’m still not...what if I try to do something and she turns me down? I would literally have to leave the planet out of sheer embarrassment.” _

“That’s a good point,” Lena replied to Kelly, ever the professional amidst this hot mess that this live stream had spiraled into. “So, for people stuck at home not working, what might you suggest for...Kara what the hell are you texting Alex about?” 

Kara’s eyes shot up. 

“Huh?” She replied, feigning innocence. “I’m not texting Alex about anything!” 

“Oh for... _ Kara _ ,” Lena insisted. “You keep looking at your phone and typing. Then Alex looks at her phone. And then you look at yours. You don’t have to be a genius to figure it out. Which, I mean, I  _ am _ , but still.” 

Kara put her phone down guiltily, praying that Alex wouldn’t admit to anything. 

“Just sister stuff,” Kara said sheepishly. 

“Yup. Sister stuff,” Alex agreed. 

Lena looked between Kara and Alex on the screen with an unconvinced expression.

Alex sent one more text to Kara before she put her phone in her back pocket, intending to ignore it, and by extension, Kara.

_ “If u don’t do something to end the annoying ass tension between u two i’ll throw u off this planet myself”  _

Kara rolled her eyes and put her phone in her own pocket, letting her eyes scan the comments quickly as Kelly made a couple more comments about meditating and mindfulness. 

_ “Did no one tell the Danvers sisters it’s rude to text on a double date? Lol”  _

Kara stared at the comment for a while, head tilting as she focused on it. 

“What is it?” Lena asked, looking over at the corner of the screen.

Kara pointed at the comment as it made its slow ascent towards the top of the screen and disappeared as more trickled in.

“Yeah? And?” Lena asked.

“What? What are we missing now?” Alex asked. 

“Nothing,” Kara said with an amused chuckle. “Someone just referred to this as a double date, that’s all.” 

Everyone went quiet for a moment. 

“Well? Isn’t that what this is?” Alex asked. 

*

Kara ended the call and the livestream shortly after that, feeling emotionally exhausted from all the minefields that had popped up during the course of the call. When she asked Kelly and Alex for help with Lena, she had no idea just how vulnerable and agitated she would feel becuase of it. She really wasn’t as good at accepting advice as she thought she would be, at least not in the romantic department. 

“So,” Lena said, standing up from the kitchen stool she had been sitting in and stretching. “I’m assuming you’re hungry again. Anything you want in particular?” 

_ You, _ Kara thought exasperatedly, wishing she had said it out loud because that would be a really easy way to get to the point, wouldn’t it? 

“Uh, I’m fine, actually.” Kara said, thrumming her fingertips against the marble countertop and starting at a now black computer screen.

Lena frowned, looking down at her friend with genuine concern. 

“Okay. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing is wrong,” Kara lied. 

“Kara. You are  _ always _ hungry. So you telling me you’re not? Means something is definitely wrong.”

Kara let out a shaky sigh. 

_ Just say it. Just say it. Rao’s sake JUST- _

“I need to talk to you about something!” Kara said, or more like yelled, after accidentally hyping herself up a little more than was necessary. 

Lena blinked, taken aback slightly by Kara’s outburst. 

“Okay,” she said slowly, moving to lean against the counter next to Kara. “What’s up?” 

_ Alright, Kara, now’s your chance,  _ she thought. She just had to figure out what to say. And it had to be perfect. 

Should she tell a joke? She would, if every joke Kara had ever heard suddenly fell out of her head, nowhere to be found. Should she say something sexy? Or at least romantic? Kara grimaced. She was pretty sure that was more Lena’s thing. Her own charm was more of a quirky, klutzy kind of deal. She could just be honest…but being honest would likely entail rambling for a very long time.

Kara felt like she had been silent for too long. She needed to say something.  _ Anything _ . 

“I…” she struggled, turning away from her laptop and towards Lena. “Lately I’ve been...Well...I’ve been wondering if...I just feel like you and I, we’re, um...” 

Kara had up until now kept her eyes locked on her hands, which were wringing endlessly in her lap. But, clearly unable to find the words she needed, she dared to glance up at Lena, hoping that her gorgeous face might be enough to inspire the words to sort of...spill out. Lena, to her surprise, was barely containing a huge grin.

“What?” Kara asked.

“You are  _ so _ bad at this,” Lena said, shaking her head and grinning even wider. 

“I-” Kara began, and then sighed heavily. “I  _ know _ .” 

“I mean don’t get me wrong, I figured it would take you awhile. And then it took you _so_ _long_ that I started to wonder if you were just one of those _really_ affectionate straight girls.”

“Well, I was questioning...” Kara muttered.

“I mean,  _ fuck _ , Kara, I spent the past few nights practically  _ throwing _ myself at you…”

“Alright. Maybe there were some signals…” Kara said, remembering Lena’s slow process of wearing less and less clothing to bed each night.

“But if I had known you just didn’t know how to make the first move, I would have done something about this awhile ago.” 

“I-” Kara said, eyes going wide as the realization of what Lena had said sunk in. “So when did you figure it out?”

“Kara,” Lena said, moving a bit boldly to stand directly in front of Kara, fitting in the space Kara had left open between her legs as she sat casually on the kitchen stool. “I am incredibly smart. And also...Alex kinda told me.” 

“What?” Kara burst, equal parts thrilled and annoyed. On one hand, Lena was so close to her and she was leaning down towards her slowly like she might kiss her and she smelled so good...but on the other hand… “When did Alex tell you?” 

“Do you really want to talk about your sister right now?” Lena asked, her tone and mannerisms switching from caring to hungry like a switch had been flipped. She bent down so that she was hovering directly over Kara, taking Kara’s chin in her grip and tilting her face upwards until they were eye to eye.

“I...no,” Kara managed to squeak in reply.

“Then what do you want?” Lena asked. 

Kara knew that if she didn’t say the right thing, for once, at this moment, then she would regret it for...well, at least until the next tense moment like this arose when she had Lena right where she wanted her so desperately. 

“You,” Kara breathed, the final admittance of it like a weight being lifted off her shoulders and promptly dropped between her legs where Lena stood, pressing against her just slightly. 

Lena sighed heavily, her jaw clenching for a moment as she stared at Kara’s mouth.

“Finally,” she said, and wasted no time, after all that had already passed between them in silent agony, in claiming Kara’s lips with her own. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just as a warning, the beginning of the next chap is gonna go straight into a sex scene. So. Careful of where you'll be when you go to read the next update. ITS FINALLY GONNA HAPPEN SO YOU CAN QUIT YELLING AT ME lol
> 
> Btw THANK YOU to everyone who left book recs. Can't wait to dive into all of them. 
> 
> And as usual, thank you guys so much for all the love and support you've left via kudos and comments. I'm a little behind in my replies, but I see all of them and you guys truly brighten my day every day with them, especially since as I've said, I have no other way of knowing the true hit count on this story while archive is running at a limited capacity.
> 
> Have a great day and stay safe. Love yinz,  
> Tess


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sin. Nothing but sin.

Kara gasped as her back hit against the marble countertop behind her roughly. She didn’t know if she had leaned back against it or if Lena had pushed her. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered other than the fact that Lena’s lips were on hers and her hands were on Kara’s hips and her heart was hammering out of her chest almost as hard and fast as Kara’s. 

Lena had to lean down to keep Kara in her orbit, and something about this didn’t seem to fit. So Kara let the way Lena pressed against her propel her up off the stool and onto the countertop behind them, wrapping her legs around Lena’s lower back and pulling her in until her pelvis collided into Kara’s. 

“Fuck,” Lena groaned from the sudden friction. 

Kara had to suppress a giggle. In the back of her mind there was a commentary running on everything they did.  _ ‘This is Lena. You’re making out with Lena. You’re grinding against LENA’  _ and it made her want to burst out laughing becuase this was  _ ridiculous _ . But it was also so fucking  _ good _ that she pushed past the urge to laugh because nothing would stop her from getting what she wanted now. 

In one quick movement, Kara gripped Lena’s shirt by the hem and pulled it up and over her head, tossing it aside deftly. Lena’s eyes went wide, stunned for a moment. 

“You just took my shirt off.” 

_ Oh, shit. _

“Sorry! Was that okay? Or was it too much?” Kara asked, worried she had already ruined this. 

“No,” Lena said in a breathless laugh. “It’s  _ more _ than okay. I just...Kara Danvers just took my shirt off.” 

“Okay!” Kara said, laughing despite herself, and finding refuge in hiding her face in Lena’s bicep for a brief moment. “So it’s not just me that’s acutely aware of how weird this is?” 

“Honestly, I was kind of running on instinct,” Lena confessed.

_ Running on instinct,  _ Kara thought.  _ Yeah. That could work. _

“Well, then, don’t stop now,” Kara said, and finally let herself look at Lena and her exposed skin where her shirt had just been, a bright red lace bra barely containing her breasts. Her mouth went dry.

Lena’s expression darkened, the awkward misstep long forgotten, and in a second she was back in her pursuit of Kara, her mouth and her soft, bare skin colliding against her.

Lena moved to yank Kara’s scrunchie out of her hair a bit roughly. Kara leaned into the tug, relishing the forcefulness of it, until her blonde curls tumbled to her shoulders. She wondered if it was too early into this new territory between them to ask Lena to do that again…

Apparently she didn’t have to ask. As Lena began to trail Kara’s bottom lip with her tongue, she pulled her hair again, harder than before, and Kara groaned. 

“Well  _ that’s _ interesting,” Lena murmured into Kara’s mouth, and Kara silenced her teasing with an open mouthed kiss and swipe of her tongue that Lena had no choice but to melt into it. 

Kara wanted too much at once. She wanted to drag her fingernails over every inch of Lena’s exposed skin. She wanted to snap the clasp of her bra and find out for herself what Lena’s breasts felt like in her grip. She wanted to throw Lena onto the countertop and discover what she tasted like. Which all seemed like great ideas, except that she was so worked up and wanted all of these things so badly and all at once that she knew she could very easily lose control of herself and hurt Lena. 

She’d never had to worry about this so much with other partners. Not really. She usually followed the lead of whoever she was with in an enthusiastic, but more or less passive role. As long as she didn’t put matters into her own hands and kept careful control of herself, she didn’t have to worry about doing any damage to her partners. But none of those other times compared to this. This wasn’t just intimacy. This wasn’t just fun. This was a desire which Kara couldn’t contain. This felt intoxicating, unhinged,  _ uncontrollable. _

“Lena,” Kara breathed, telling herself to pull away and get a hold of herself but finding herself unable to do so and just kissing her harder. 

Lena’s hands found their way under Kara’s shirt, fingertips tracing over her back and stomach. Kara gripped the countertop, squeezing so hard she felt the marble begin to crack. 

“Lena,” Kara said again, pulling away slightly. 

“Yeah?” Lena asked, looking drunk with lust, her lips stained red from the smear of her lipstick. 

“I don’t feel in control right now,” Kara struggled to say. 

Lena looked at her, her expression a mixture of lust and defiance.

“Oh I’m more than able to take control if that’s what you want,” Lena purred, closing the gap between them again.

  
Kara sank into Lena’s kiss, wondering where the  _ hell _ all the self control she had maintained the past three years around Lena suddenly went. 

“No, I mean,” Kara pressed, barely able to find her memory of the English language as Lena’s mouth moved to trail along to her jawline. “I’m about to break your countertop,” she said honestly.

“Then  _ break _ it,” Lena challenged in a whisper in Kara’s ear. 

“Lena,” Kara insisted even as a shudder ran down her spine. “You can’t exactly go buy a new one right now.” 

“Oh,” Lena said, pausing for just a moment. “That’s true. Well, maybe we can…” she struggled to say. “Go somewhere else?” 

“Is there anything in this apartment you don’t mind wrecking?” Kara asked honestly. 

Lena laughed into Kara’s hair, teeth grazing Kara’s shoulder lightly. Kara tilted her head to further expose her neck and shoulder to the attention Lena gave them. 

“Kara there are plenty of things of mine I’d love for you to  _ wreck _ ,” she teased. 

Kara shuddered, annoyed that such a  _ crude _ line was working on her. Her hands found their way back to Lena’s exposed stomach, only to tense and pull away, still afraid of the power she was trying desperately to keep at bay. 

“Lena, it’s not funny. I could really hurt you. I’m too...wound up.” 

Lena pulled away from Kara, letting her hands rest on Kara’s knees to maintain some kind of contact. 

“Oh. Well. In  _ that _ case,” she said, and took one of Kara’s hands, tugging until Kara hopped down from the kitchen counter and followed as Lena led her to her bedroom. Lena pulled Kara into the room and all but shoved her onto the bed, Kara falling back against it with a baffled and delighted giggle. 

“Lena! What did I just say?” Kara said. 

“I heard you,” Lena said, efficiently helping Kara out of her shirt before crawling on top of her and straddling her hips, leaning down to give her a slow, languid kiss that made Kara’s toes curl. “You said you were _wound_ _up_. So. Let me take care of it. Let me take care of _you_.”

Kara gulped, and nodded. There was still a voice in the back of her head screaming  _ ‘Is this really happening?’  _ even as Lena worked her way down Kara’s body with soft kisses and exploring hands. Kara felt transfixed as she watched Lena. Kara had always wondered if there would be some sort of learning curve involved in switching from guys to girls. Lena clearly did not worry about such things. Kara wanted so badly to reach out and touch her, press against her, but if the sudden ripping sound that rang out as Kara gripped the comforter too tightly in response to Lena’s mouth finding the swell of Kara’s hip bone above her sweatpants were any indication about her lack of control at the moment…

Lena looked up, eyes startled and then right back to hungry. 

“Go ahead and rip that up if you need to. I have others.” 

Kara sighed in relief, grateful now more than ever for Lena’s knowledge and understanding about her abilities that not all her sexual partners up to this point in her life had been privy to. 

Lena slowly, painfully so, pulled at the drawstring of Kara’s sweatpants, making a show of it, until Kara felt them loosen. Kara thought her heart had to be beating so hard that it was visible through her chest. Lena looked positively smug as she pulled her sweats down along with Kara’s panties, throwing them off to the side and out of her way. Kara went very still as Lena splayed one hand flat on her stomach to still her while the other hand traced teasing patterns on the inside of her thighs, considering the space between Kara’s legs much in the same way Kara had noticed that she considered a chessboard before she claimed checkmate. Then she rose, bringing her face up close to Kara’s, and placed a palm tentatively against her center.

“All that power,” Lena said as she watched Kara’s face closely. “Is this what it feels like?” she asked, and sunk a two digits into her. 

Kara groaned, throwing her head back against the mattress. Lena pressed in deeper with ease, Kara so wet and in need of her touch that it was almost embarrassing. Every impulse in her body told Kara to thrust against Lena’s hand, but she forced herself to stay still, even less sure of her own self control than she had been a moment before. She wanted to blame her eagerness on the long dry spell she had been in lately. But if she was going to be honest with herself she had to admit that no one would have the same effect on her that Lena had as she kept her eyes locked on Kara’s through her motions. 

It felt like too much. Not just the fact that she was getting fucked by Lena. But she was getting fucked by Lena while Lena was staring down at her intently with this look of acute focus and lust but also affection and kindness. Any sexual daydreams Kara had had about Lena before now had been purely about the action of fucking her and being fucked, the pure physicality of it. But now, especially with Lena right next to her and looking into her eyes like she was searching for something, Kara felt that ever present urge of hers to say something rising up faster than her orgasm. Which was already looming. 

It had been a really,  _ really _ long dry spell. 

“Have you done this before?” Kara asked. 

“What? Sex?” Lena asked with an amused smile as she picked up the pace of her fingers just slightly, causing Kara to moan unexpectedly. “Yeah. It’s come up once or twice.” 

“No. I- _ Fuck _ , Lena,” Kara groaned, head tossing back as Lena curled her fingers inside of her. “I mean with a woman?”

Instead of answering, Lena leaned in to kiss Kara for a few moments, her breath hot against her mouth, before pulling away again. Kara felt her nose scrunch up, perplexed. 

“Is that a yes?” 

“Kara,” Lena, her pace slackening inside of Kara regretfully as she pressed her head against Kara’s chin, sighing. “Are you always this talkative while you’re being fucked?” 

“I...I don’t know. Maybe?” 

Lena lifted her head to face Kara again, narrowing her eyes, a devilish smile on her lips. 

“Fine. Then you use your mouth to talk, if you must, and I’ll use my mouth for this.” 

Lena left another, more abbreviated trail of kisses down Kara’s stomach, like she did so just because she could, and pulled her hair to one side, giving Kara a smartass wink before dragging her tongue slowly through her folds.

Kara didn’t even know how to classify the noise she made in response. She just knew it was  _ loud _ . And she also knew that there was no stopping the orgasm that was roaring towards its peak faster than Kara could think up some other mood-killing thing to say.

Lena’s pace had been slow at first, like she was simply exploring, enjoying herself. But the louder Kara got, the faster Lena’s mouth and fingers moved in response. It was like it was involuntary for her, like she needed to get Kara off just as much as Kara needed the release of it. 

“Lena?” Kara panted desperately. “Lena, I-” 

Kara’s orgasm ripped through her faster than she could articulate it’s arrival. One moment she was bracing herself for it, and the next she was making all manner of ungodly sounds broken up by the desperate calling out of Lena’s name, the comforter turning to shreds in her grip as she rode out the crashing swell of her bliss.

*

A little while later, Kara was laying on her stomach, panting and utterly spent. 

“Feel more relaxed now?” Lena asked. 

Kara laughed into the comforter, which was now utterly destroyed as a result of the most mind shattering orgasm of her life. Ane the orgasm after that, becuase Lena was nothing if not  _ thorough _ . 

“Yeah. Still feel bad about your comforter, though.” 

“Eh,” Lena said with a shrug. “No worries. It only cost more than your rent.” 

Kara narrowed her eyes at Lena, annoyed and also thrilled by how smug she was. But she was about to wipe that smile off of her face, and replace it with something much more enticing. 

“In that case,” Kara said, sitting up and grabbing Lena by the waist, pulling her in one quick movement until Lena was laying beneath her and kissing her fiercely, her free hand moving to tug at the hem of Lena’s pants. “Now I may have better control of my strength than I did when we started. But just to be safe, don’t do anything unexpected, and pick a safeword.” 

“Oh, keep bossing me around like this and I’ll do whatever you want,  _ Supergirl _ ,” Lena hummed.

“Are you calling me Supergirl becuase that’s the safeword you want?” 

“ _ God _ , no,” Lena breathed. “I will say that word loudly and often, thank you  _ very _ much.” 

*

The sun was beaming relatively high in the sky when Kara finally awoke the next morning. It had to be 9 am, at least. She was not one to usually sleep in this late. But even by Kryptonian standards, she was spent. If she were human she definitely would have been sore, maybe even bruised, as a result of last night's activities. Apparently three years worth of built up sexual tension made for a very long night. 

Kara could barely believe last night had happened. It was like a dream. A really long, really  _ specific _ sex dream. But then she felt Lena press closer to her, still completely unclothed, her skin just as soft as Kara remembered, and she knew it had to have been real.

Kara rolled over, rubbing her bleary eyes to get a better look at the woman lying next to her. What was left of the sheets (they never did get to retrieve a new comforter from Lena’s linen closet) were wrapped around Lena’s chest and legs in a tangle, leaving Kara completely without covers. But somehow she didn’t mind. She, unlike Lena, had at least dragged herself out of bed long enough to put pajama pants on. 

Lena had tried to take them off. Twice.

Kara’s hands tensed at her sides, wanting to reach out and touch the body she had gotten to know so intimately over hours of worship the night before. But she wasn’t sure if the boundaries between them that had been renegotiated last night still applied this morning. So she settled on staring at Lena, carefully observing every part of her that she could see, trying to memorize how each of those parts had felt in her hands. 

She must have stared too long, because eventually Lena stirred, her eyes opening just in time to see Kara averting her gaze as quickly and nonchalantly as she could. 

“Hey,” Lena said, in the same tone she had greeted Kara all the other mornings they woke up together. The only difference being a much more satisfied smile on her face. 

“Hi,” Kara replied, and then promptly clamped her mouth shut before she could say anything else and ruin the afterglow. 

“I don’t think I can move,” Lena murmured into her pillow, suddenly shy. 

“In a good way or a bad way?” Kara said, amused but also slightly worried. 

“Oh, in the  _ best _ way,” Lena insisted, moving to lie on her back. 

Kara mimicked the shift, and they both stared up at the ceiling for a long, silent moment. 

“So I’m not-” Lena finally said. “I’m not crazy, right? Last night was…like…”

Insane? Mind blowing? Literally the best sex Kara had ever had?” 

“Yeah,” Kara answered. “It was.” 

“Okay,” Lena replied. “Just making sure that that isn’t just...typical for a Kryptonian or anything.” 

“No,” Kara breathed. “That was...definitely...above average.” 

“Well that’s good. I guess. Or...weird. Is it weird?” 

Kara sighed, glad she wasn’t the one who said it. 

“I don’t know. It didn’t feel weird at the time.”

“Right. No.” 

“But now it kinda does.”

“Yeah,” Lena replied, subtly pulling the sheets up over one of her breasts that was still exposed. “So...should we talk about it?” 

Kara groaned, rolling over so her pillow could mute it. 

“Do we have to?” she lamented.

“Wow,” Lena said. “And here I thought you were the chatty one.” 

“Well! For once I don’t know what to say!” 

“Okay,” Lena said, taking a slow calming breath. “I guess the first thing I should ask is...Was this a one time thing? Or…” 

Kara thought about last night, remembered how it felt, and how just the memory of it sent a thrill through her chest.

“I-I hope not?” 

“Oh thank  _ God _ . Good. Because, like... _ fuck _ ,” Lena said.

Kara laughed drowsily, moving to rest her arm over Lena’s stomach. 

“But, okay,” Lena said. “So what does that mean? I mean was it just physical? Or...romantic? Or-”

Kara buried her face in her hands, overwhelmed at the suggestion behind Lena’s question. It was too early in the morning to ponder all of these tricky questions. 

“Okay,” Kara conceded through her hands. “This is too weird.” 

“I know!” Lena exclaimed.

Kara turned to look Lena in the eye.

“You’re literally my best friend in the whole world,” she said.

“And you’re mine!” Lena insisted.

“And I love the crap out of you.” 

“Me too!” 

“But I-dating?” Kara asked exasperatedly. “Doesn’t that seem weird? I mean….how do you just start dating your best friend? What if it doesn’t, I dunno, go well?”

“Why do you think it wouldn’t go well?” Lena asked, looking suddenly self conscious.

“Well, hell, I dunno, Lena. I just...I didn’t think it this far through. And...ugh,  _ God _ ,” Kara rolled into her pillow again. “I don’t want to lose you as a friend!” she mumbled.

“Kara, hey,” Lena said, reaching out to trace patterns into Kara’s neck with her fingernails reassuringly. “You could never lose me as a friend. Okay?” 

Kara breathed deep, relieved.

“Can I make a suggestion?” Lena asked. 

“Please do,” Kara pleaded, still face down because the sensation of Lena’s fingers dancing against her neck was incredibly soothing.

“So...clearly neither of us thought this through before we, you know, jumped into it. And since we don’t know what we want to do about it yet, but neither of us want to stop. At least,” Lena’s hand moved down from Kara’s neck to her back and back up in a slow up and motion. “ _ I  _ don’t want to stop.”

Kara cleared her throat, moving to lay on her side and inch a bit closer to Lena, close enough that she could feel her body heat. Lena’s hand settled low on Kara’s hip.

“Me either,” Kara replied, eyes glancing down at the precarious placement of Lena’s hand. 

“In that case,” Lena said. “Why don’t we just keep this going for a little while longer? Let it be just sex. And while we’re doing  _ that _ ,” Lena’s hand crept slowly to the inside of Kara’s thighs. Kara’s breath hitched. “We can figure out all the other details involved. And reapproach the topic in...a week or so?” 

Kara thought on Lena’s proposal for a moment. A week of amazing sex with Lena with no strings attached and no need to define what they were besides two friends having fun?

“Sounds perfect,” Kara breathed, followed by a low moan as Lena moved to stroke her center over the fabric of her pajama pants. And then, regrettably, she remembered the world that existed outside this bedroom. “Ah, fuck me.” 

“Working on it,” Lena said.

“No,” Kara said with a giggle, trying not to succumb to the tension building in Kara’s center in response to Lena’s touch. “I mean I have to go. I have to deliver all that PPE, remember?” 

“Oh yeah,” Lena said, her hand stilling regretfully. “Shit, was that yesterday we had that conversation? Why does it feel like ages ago?” 

“Because we’ve been busy,” Kara nearly growled, leaning in to kiss Lena fiercely. “Okay. I gotta go.” 

Lena groaned regrettably, taking Kara’s hand in her own as she went to get out of bed and tugging like she might convince her to get back into bed out of sheer force of will. Kara turned to look at Lena, commiting the image of her to memory along with all the other unforgettable sights, sounds, and feelings, she had vowed never to forget from the night before. 

“I will be back as soon as I can. Okay?” 

“Can it be soon enough that I can just lie here like this and wait for you?” 

Kara’s stomach flipped at the thought of it. It took everything in her not to crawl on top of Lena and relive the previous night all over again. 

“No promises,” Kara said playfully. “Besides, you need to eat something to get your strength back up by the time I come back or I’ll wear you out completely.” 

“Oh, bet,” Lena replied, tossing a pillow in the direction of Kara’s ass as she exited the bedroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Go easy on me, fam, smut is not my strong suit.
> 
> PS LOL remember when I said this story was only gonna be 3 or 4 parts? Like the real world quarantine, shit is lasting way longer than we bargained for XD
> 
> I don't know what boat yall are in in this whole pile of shit, but over here where I am people are just starting to pretend that the rules don't matter and they can do whatever they want bc FREEDOM. So that's fun! Thank god I can write to keep my mind occupied XD
> 
> As always, I love yinz and im blown away by your love and support for this story. Sorry if the editing is for shit, I edited and posted this while a lil drunk. Yay quarantine! Stay safe,  
> Tess


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If you've read any of my stuff before, you know that I physically cannot stick to one point of view the whole story. So. Surprise Lena POV!

Lena wasn’t able to fully relax in her own bed until she heard the familiar “whooshing” sound of Kara jumping into flight off of her balcony, leaving her alone in her apartment. She needed some time away from Kara to process what had happened last night. But then, of course, once Kara actually left, Lena immediately missed her soothing presence. 

Lena sighed, rolling over in bed and grabbing her phone from her nightstand. She should have given some notice to the missed calls and emails from work that were slowly filling up her notifications. Or she could have opened one of several email inquiries from reporters outside of Catco that wanted to do a fluff piece on Kara and Lena’s publicized quarantine adventures. But Lena found herself ignoring all of that and opening her text messages to the conversation with Alex that had unfolded just before the end of last night’s live stream. 

Alex:  _ Okay, I can’t fkin BELIEVE I’m about to say this. But would u please make a move on my sister already?  _

Lena:  _ Excuse me??? _

Alex:  _ UGH. COME ON, LENA. You’re into her. Shes into u. Neither of u will admit it. And I can’t listen to Kara talk about it anymore. Okay?? I CAN’T. PLEASE JUST END MY SUFFERING. I BEG YOU _

Lena:  _ So...just to be clear. You are begging me to screw your sister?  _

Alex:  _...why you gotta be like this, Luthor?  _

Lena:  _ Hahahaha. Well thanks for the heads up. I’ve been admittedly going a little crazy trying to figure out what she wants _

Alex:  _ K that’s nice please don’t tell me any more. I forreal do not want to know _

Lena chuckled to herself. Of all the scenarios she had imagined of her and Kara finally hooking up, being goaded on by Alex to make a move on Kara, Lena’s now sort-of roommate, in the middle of a  _ pandemic _ , was definitely not what she had expected.

Lena sat up in bed and pulled her arms above her head to stretch out her back. It felt like there was no muscle in her body that wasn’t sore from last night's activities. 

Not that she was complaining. If anything, she was glad for the soreness. It was evidence to confirm that last night was real and she really had fucked Kara Danvers. Aka Supergirl. Her best friend. Several times. 

More than anything, Lena was still in shock over it. She had honestly gotten to the point that she did not expect them to ever actually hook up. Sure, Lena had been attracted to Kara at least a little bit since the moment they met. And yeah, she had sent out a ton of signals over the years to Kara that she wanted a physical relationship if Kara wanted that, too. But they had flirted and danced around their attraction to each other for years, to the point that it just became routine for them. Lena never thought Kara would actually go for it. And when she did…

Just thinking about last night made Lena’s chest swell like she couldn’t get enough air. Kara was so  _ good _ . And sexy, and adorable, and  _ attentive _ . And, really, when you fantasize about fucking your best friend, you have to assume that the real thing won’t be quite as amazing as you built it up to be in your head. So you can imagine Lena’s elated surprise when bedding Kara in real life was everything she had hoped for and more, delivered in the form of a body so fucking  _ perfect _ that Lena no longer blamed that strange little cult of people for worshipping Kara like a god. 

And then there was what happened this morning. Lena had expected Kara to bolt, to take off in a rush with some half baked excuse and avoid Lena as long as possible. Lena wouldn’t have been surprised if Kara made a point to never even mention last night again. 

But she did. They had had a rational, adult conversation about it, and had even made a plan on how to proceed in a way that they were both comfortable with. 

  
It was amazing what you could accomplish when you actually communicated with someone. 

Lena threw on whatever sweatpants and t-shirt she deemed “clean enough” to wear for the day, grimacing slightly at how low her fashion and hygiene standards had plummeted since the pandemic started. But she was still apparently alluring enough for Kara to want her. So. How bad could it be? 

When Lena walked out to the kitchen, she could smell fresh brewed coffee. Kara had made her a cup before she left. Of  _ course _ she had. For someone who wasn’t sure if she wanted to be in a relationship with Lena or not, Kara certainly had no issue proving her case of how great of a girlfriend she would be. 

Just thinking the word nearly stopped Lena dead in her tracks. She had a lot to think about. What did she want from Kara in the long run? How had she not thought this through up until now? Before last night, Lena’s attraction to Kara and her friendship with Kara felt like two separate entities. Sure, she found herself doing everything short of a _lap_ _dance_ to try and seduce Kara the moment she moved in. But that hadn’t changed her ability to be Kara’s friend just the same as she always had been. Now, however, those two compartmentalized boxes of emotions had collided, tumbling together like bodies beneath the sheets until Lena could no longer tell where friendship ended and desire began.

The more she thought about last night, the more Lena felt a heat start to rise deep inside of her, already craving more. How was she supposed to think rationally about this when it felt like the floodgates of her brazen physical  _ need _ for Kara had been swung open with reckless abandon?

She didn’t have to make any decisions right this second, anyhow. 

Lena plopped onto the couch, coffee in one hand and a donut stuffed into her mouth so she could free up the other hand to grab the remote and switch on the news. Yes, she knew she shouldn’t be watching the news so often, considering how it had been affecting her mental health lately. But she had a feeling that she would like today’s top story. 

_ “Breaking news this morning,” _ a cheery reporter said from what looked like their basement converted into a green screen broadcasting space.  _ “Supergirl has made a surprise delivery to several local hospitals of respirators and personal protective equipment from a supposedly ‘anonymous donor’. We’re live outside of National City Research Hospital for more on this story.”  _

_ “Supergirl!”  _ a reporter called, trying to get the attention of the Girl of Steel. 

Lena sat up a little straighter in her seat. She couldn’t help but perk up at the sight of Kara, even if it was on television. 

Kara looked like she was about to take off into the sky, but stopped and turned to the reporter calling for her attention, so used to media attention that she responded to it unthinkingly. But the second Kara was in full view of the camera, Lena knew something was wrong. She gave the camera and the reporter her signature hands on hips, jovial Supergirl smile. But it was off. No one but someone who knew her as well as Lena did might have picked up on it. Kara’s smile was a mimic, it was hollow and hiding something deeper, something more troubled. And Lena instantly started to worry. 

_ “Supergirl, where did these supplies come from?” _ the reporter asked.

“Uh,” Kara replied, seeming to need to take a moment to comprehend the question. Which was also very unlike her. “The person responsible for this donation wishes to remain anonymous.” 

_ “How have you been adjusting to quarantine?”  _ the reporter asked. 

“Just, um, you know, trying to keep busy. Help wherever I can.” 

Her answers were usually seamless, easy, like she was following a script ripped straight out of a handbook titled “How To Be The Most Charismatic Superhero In The World”. But now her answers seemed forced, like she had to struggle to find the right words.

_ “Have you seen any of Kara Danvers’ live streams with your good friend Lena Luthor?” _

Kara let out a nervous laugh.

“Not personally, no,” she said. “I think it’s a great idea, though! We have to feel connected to each other now more than ever.” Kara replied.

_ “So you’re not a tad bit jealous that Lena is spending so much time with another  _ friend _?”  _

Supergirl scrunched up her nose.

“I don’t think I understand the question. Look, I have a couple more deliveries to make, so...thanks. And stay safe!” she said, and took off into the sky.

Lena frowned. Something had changed between this morning when Kara left and the interview she had just watched. And despite Lena’s rational part of her brain trying to insist that she not think too much into it, Lena couldn’t help but wonder if it had something to do with her and their hookup. Kara wasn’t...regretting last night, was she? And if she was, what did that mean for their friendship/relationship/whatever the hell it was? 

Lena tried to distract herself from her invasive thoughts by getting up to grab another donut. Or two. Which was fine, because she had burned plenty of calories last night.

Despite herself, Lena’s mind kept drifting back to Kara even as she changed the channel. Was she okay? Why did she seem upset during that interview? Lena couldn’t blame Kara if she was mad with the interviewer. After all, Supergirl was going out of her way to do something helpful during a crisis, and all they could think to talk about was the supposed love triangle between herself, Lena, Kara? A rumor which was, considering the truth of the situation,  _ hilarious _ . But Kara clearly wasn’t laughing. 

“Come on, Lena. Do something more productive with yourself other than fretting over nothing,” she said to herself. 

Lena found herself talking to herself a lot more often now that she had no one around, like a secretary or an unsuspecting intern, to bounce her ideas off of. And that was okay!

Lena finally resigned to open her laptop and get some semblance of work done. Though, at this point, her job had boiled down to putting out whatever fires she could. Talking down deep pocketed stockholders, reworking budgets, figuring out how to keep the company afloat until this was all over. Whenever that might be. 

But Lena couldn’t help but think that under normal circumstances she would be appalled by her own work ethic. Especially considering how hard she had worked to drag Luthor Corp out of the shit her brother had buried it in. But every time she so much as opened  _ another _ all caps email from a board member, her anxiety started to climb. If only her mother weren’t in jail. Now would be a great time to dump the company on her for a while, seeing as she was always saying how much better she would be at running LCorp than Lena was. 

“What a bitch,” Lena said to herself, chuckling, as she typed out another professionally worded ‘calm the fuck down’ email to the head of the finance department. 

Lena got involved enough in her work that she was able to forget about her worries over Kara and lose track of time. By the time she heard Supergirl drop down on the balcony, it was a little after noon. Lena hadn’t expected Kara to come back so soon. She assumed she had other superhero duties besides delivering the shipments from LCorp to the hospitals. But the way Lena’s stomach flipped and the pit of her stomach clenched yearningly at the sight of Kara told her that she was definitely happy to see that she chose to come home early. 

As usual, Kara stripped down to her sports bra and underwear before entering the apartment, worried about being contagious to Lena. Lena had always been appreciative of Kara’s efforts to keep her safe. Although, if she was being perfectly honest, she mostly enjoyed the view of Kara bouncing through her living room every day in her underwear. Even more so now that Lena had seen that cut, unfairly perfect body put to work. But Lena was also feeling the effects of quarantine fatigue enough that she didn’t really care if Kara took extra measures to keep contagions away from her or not. Lena knew that it wasn’t right to feel that way, knew that her disinterest in her own health and safety was just another symptom of the anxiety she was feeling as a result of the quarantine. But calling an invasive thought out for what it was didn’t make it go away, unfortunately.

Kara didn’t give her usual, rushed ‘Hi!’ on her way to the shower. She walked right past Lena, her eyes glazed over and distant, her gait slow and methodical instead of quick and animated. 

Lena furrowed her brow, her concern for her friend growing just as fast as her worry that she was somehow the cause of Kara’s change in behavior. Once again Lena told herself not to overthink it.  _ She _ was the one that had come up with this loose agreement between them. She couldn’t just go and overcomplicate it mere hours after suggesting it in the first place. So Lena sat on the couch, staring at her work but not actually engaging with it, and tried to be patient and out of her own head as Kara got her shower. Lena wasn’t going to overanalyze Kara’s behaviour. She  _ wasn’t _ . Even when her usual five minute shower turned into a ten minute one. And then twelve minutes. 

By the time it was getting close to fifteen minutes Lena couldn’t take it anymore. If nothing else, she was just wasting water at this point. 

Lena knew she couldn’t just burst into the shower and ask why Kara was taking so long and if it was because she had done something wrong. That wasn’t very casual of her. But if she framed it as something else, something more  _ fun _ ...

Lena tiptoed into the bathroom, barely able to see Kara in the shower now that the bathroom was almost completely steamed up. In any normal apartment Kara would have run out of hot water by now, but Lena of course had made modifications to the place over the years. 

“Kara?” Lena asked tentatively, taking her shirt off as the first move in her plan to try and join Kara in the shower just to see how she would react, hoping it would bring some clarity to her sudden shift in behaviour. 

Kara said nothing in reply. As Lena’s eyes adjusted past the steam fogging up the glass of the shower door, she saw the blurry outline of Kara. She was leaning against the wall beneath the shower head, both hands pressed against the tile like it was the only thing holding her upright, completely unmoving as the water ran over her. 

Lena felt her chest tighten with concern. Something was definitely wrong. 

“Kara?” Lena asked again, her voice pitched upwards with worry. 

Kara stiffened, head turning towards Lena only briefly.

“I’m fine,” Kara said blankly. “I’ll be out in a minute.”

The way her voice cracked like she was barely able to keep from crying indicated that Kara was definitely  _ not _ fine. And that left Lena with a choice to make. Either she could take Kara at her word and leave her alone, hoping she would recover from whatever was bothering her on her own terms, or she could try to help. 

Lena sighed, working up her courage before sliding the glass door open so she could look at Kara, who looked like she was trying incredibly hard to keep her breathing even. Despite her soaked hair covering most of her face, Lena was able to see that Kara’s eyes were red and glassy from crying.

“Hey. Kara. Kara?” Lena pressed, just trying to get her to look at her. 

Kara took a shuddering breath, knowing she couldn't hide from Lena any longer.

“I didn’t…” she struggled. “I didn’t want you to worry.” 

“What happened?” Lena asked, the possibilities her brain tried to come up with bouncing around her head distractingly. 

“It’s nothing. It’s...it’s stupid,” Kara said.

“Don’t ever say that,” Lena said, but she could still feel the wall Kara had put up between them as tangibly as if it were right in front of her. She needed to find some way to break through it, some way to bring Kara back to her. 

Lena took a steadying breath, her mind made up, and stripped off everything but her lingerie. She slid the glass door open a bit more, making enough room to slip into the shower, ducking under Kara’s arm and standing beneath the showerhead between the two hands Kara kept pressed against the tile. 

It took Kara a moment to register Lena’s presence in front of her. When she finally did, she blinked past the steady stream of water trickling over her face, her eyes looking perplexed as they searched Lena’s face. 

“What are you doing?” she asked. 

“Trying to get you to talk to me,” Lena replied. 

“Lena, I don’t-”

“You were there for me. When I was having a hard time. Now I’m gonna be here for you.” 

“Wh-” Kara said, shaking her head and pulling her hair away from her face and off to one shoulder. She looked down, finally noticing Lena’s state of undress. “Why did you leave your lingerie on in the shower?” 

“I..I thought it would be more respectful this way. I came in here to talk, not to-” 

“Fuck?” Kara supplied blankly. 

Lena laughed, still getting used to Kara swearing. Either Lena was rubbing off on her, or stress gave Kara an uncharacteristically foul mouth. Correction: stress and sex. Lena had coaxed a string of expletives out of Kara several times when she was getting her off last night.

“Yeah,” Lena replied. “So. Come on. Talk to me.” 

Kara tilted her head back into the steady stream of hot water, sighing. 

“It was...a lot. Going to those hospitals today. Seeing it all for myself instead of just swinging by or a couple photos for PR. Everything going on out there is so...it’s…” Kara shuddered. “It brought some old memories to the surface that I try to keep buried. Of Krypton. Right before it-” 

Lena tried to swallow past the sudden dry lump in her throat. Of course this would trigger traumatic memories for Kara. How had she not thought of that before?

“I’m sorry,” Lena said, reaching up to tuck a lock of Kara’s wet hair behind her ear, and then let her hand linger on Kara’s cheek. “I shouldn’t have let you go out there just for me.” 

“Don’t apologize for that,” Kara replied on instinct. “I offered. It was the most logical choice.” 

“Logic doesn’t mean shit to me if it ends up hurting you.” 

Kara looked Lena in the eye for the first time since she had come home, her face softening past the hard lines in her brow her anxiety attack had caused. She seemed to finally realize that Lena was still cupping her cheek, and she pressed her face into her touch, bringing her own hand to grip Lena’s wrist and keep her there. 

  
“I don’t know what I’d do without you,” Kara said candidly. 

Lena gave her a small smile in response, trying to hide her shivering because she was practically naked and Kara was, admittedly, hogging all the hot water. 

“What are best friends for?” Lena replied.

Kara chuckled. 

“Not for surprising their friends in the shower, as far as I know.” 

“Says who?” Lena asked teasingly.

“Oh, so you do this with all your friends?” Kara asked. 

“I might if I knew it would be this well received.”

“Well I’m certainly not complaining,” Kara said, waggling her eyebrows exaggeratedly.

Lena laughed. And then so did Kara. And then somehow laughing turned to kissing, and before Lena knew it she was pinned to the wall adjacent to the showerhead, finally under the hot water so she could thaw out, Kara pressing her naked body against her. The fact that Lena had not oggled at or touched Kara’s body while she had been trying to console her should have earned her a fucking medal or something. But now that Kara was initiating the intimacy, Lena was more than happy to sink into it. But she couldn’t, not completely, because she also knew Kara well enough to guess that she was usuing sex to distract Lena from her concern over her wellbeing.

“Kara,” Lena breathed, pulling away from Kara’s intoxicating kiss. “Are you sure you’re okay?” 

Kara didn’t let up on Lena, she only redirected her attention to Lena’s pulse point. Lena groaned, trying to keep her focus even though Kara was very clearly trying to distract from her mental health by being a tricky little seductress. 

“Fine. You?” Kara murmured into Lena’s throat.

“Kara,” Lena insisted.

Kara sighed, finally pulling away from Lena enough to let them both focus. 

“I will be fine. Eventually. Good enough?” she asked.

“Nope. I insist that you take the rest of the day as a self care day.” 

“Lena. I took the whole day off yesterday.” 

“Well you need another one! At least cancel the live stream for the day. I know it weighs on you to have to come up with new content every single day.”

Kara frowned.

“That’s not an option. Cat would somehow find a way to kill me while still maintaining safe social distancing.” 

“Let me worry about Cat,” Lena said, and then ducked away from Kara’s advances so she could slip out of the shower.

“Where are you going?” Kara asked, disappointment in her voice.

“Unlike you, I don’t like to waste water. I’ll be in the bedroom if you feel so inclined as to join me.” 

“Yes, ma’am,” Lena heard Kara say, followed by the sounds of her stumbling out of the shower to follow her. 

She was met with a towel tossed at her face when she entered the bedroom.

“Hey!” Kara snapped through a laugh as she caught the towel and started to dry off. “You don’t throw things at people when they’re about to give you something you want!” 

“Oh, this is not about me,” Lena said, pointing to the bed commandingly. “Right now is all about you and what you need. Lie down.” 

Kara didn’t have to be asked twice.

*

Lena eventually pulled herself away from Kara long enough to make good on her promise, and to put on some dry clothes, though Kara whined in protest and tried to pull Lena back against her as she settled into Lena’s bed for a nap. Lena assured Kara that she would join her in a minute as she shut the bedroom door behind her and made a phone call.

“Cat? It’s Lena.”

Cat sighed loudly through the phone. 

_ “Lena. Under the current circumstances, cocktail hour has been moved from 5pm to 3pm. And I do not take phone calls during cocktail hour. So. This had better be important.”  _

“Yeah. Well the thing is. Kara and I can’t do the livestream today.” 

Cat paused, the silence feeling entirely weaponized.

_ “Why not?” _ she asked slowly. 

“It’s just that…” Lena stopped, trying to think of a good excuse. But she knew better than to try and lie to Cat Grant. “Kara needs a night off. She’s got a lot on her mind.” 

_ “Hmm, _ ” Cat replied. “ _ Well she did seem a bit off during that interview this morning.”  _

Lena blinked, confused. Kara didn’t have any interviews this morning. But  _ Supergirl _ did…

“Cat I...I don’t know what you mean,” Lena struggled.

“ _ Oh, cut the crap, Luthor, _ ” Cat replied. “ _ I know who she really is. And I wouldn’t want to be in her shoes right now, having to continue to be the light of the city even when she can’t bear it anymore. So. Fine. Night off granted.” _

Lena was stunned. 

“I...okay. Thank you, Miss Grant.” 

_ “Don’t thank me yet. I’m still owed some sort of content to run this evening to make up this. So. Tell me. Who were those hospital deliveries from?”  _

Lena rolled her eyes, unsurprised.

“Really, Cat? You’re gonna stoop that low?” 

_ “I’m giving you something, now you have to give me something in return. Information, in this case.”  _

“I’m sure you already know who they were from. You don’t miss much, do you?”

_ “Of course I know, but I need to hear you confirm it.”  _

Lena groaned, resisting the urge to throw her phone. 

“Fine. It was me.” 

_ “Lovely. Oh, and Lena?”  _

“Yes?” she replied through gritted teeth, annoyed she had been bested by the CEO of a tabloid magazine. 

_ “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t mention to Kara that I know her true identity. We’ve already done the whole song and dance a few times before. I tell her I know, she panics and does everything in her power to convince me I’m wrong, I eventually pretend to believe her because she is  _ exhausting _. And the cycle starts all over again. So, spare me a few weeks of drama, would you?”  _

Lena rolled her eyes.

“No promises,” she replied, mostly to get under Cat’s skin than anything else, and hung up before Cat could retort.

“Who were you talking to?” Kara asked sleepily when Lena re-entered the bedroom.

“Your witch of a boss,” Lena replied. “You’re off the hook for tonight, by the way.”

Kara reached out to Lena, who instinctively offered her hand for Kara to squeeze.

“You’re amazing,” Kara said. “Thank you.” 

“Of course,” Lena said, putting her phone aside and crawling back into bed next to Kara. “By the way, there’s something I should probably tell you about Cat.” 

“What, that she knows I’m Supergirl?” Kara guessed, snuggling up to Lena in a way that made Lena want to melt. “Yeah. I know. It’s a whole thing. It’s pretty amusing, actually. She built a whole empire on divulging celebrity secrets and the biggest secret she’s ever come across she keeps to herself. Because she’s a  _ softy _ .”

Lena arched an eyebrow at Kara. 

“Careful,” she said. “Or I’ll start to worry that I’m not the only millionaire you’re screwing.” 

“Oh, she wishes,” Kara said with a chuckle into Lena’s hair. “Though maybe I should. Finally get that raise I’ve been hinting at.” 

“Kara, one night with you and Cat would probably hand you the whole company.”

“You think?”

“Oh yeah,” Lena said, mindlessly tracing her fingers up and down Kara’s arm. “Why, are you interested in the tech business? I’ve got a company that’s circling the drain that I’d be more than happy to get rid of.”

Kara frowned slightly, tilting her head up so she could look Lena straight on. 

“How bad is it with LCorp? Really?” 

“It’s fine,” Lena said with a shrug, but she knew that Kara saw through her casual facade. 

The problem with letting people get close to you is that they then are actually  _ close _ to you and you can’t just lie to save face anymore. Lena sighed, licking her lips. 

“Things are tight,” she finally admitted. “The bulk of my workload right now is convincing the rest of the board not to lay off half the staff. Even though they could just cut their own massive pay checks and help fix the situation like I-” Lena cut herself off, her knee jerk reaction to not reveal too much about herself, even to Kara, kicking in. 

“You took a pay cut?” Kara asked. 

“Of course I did. What the fuck do I need all that money for, anyway?” Lena shrugged casually. “I can learn to be frugal.” 

Kara chuckled, running her fingers through Lena’s hair as she did so.

“Really?” Kara asked. “Is there anything in your closet that costs less than a grand?” 

“Hey!” Lena said, feigning offense. “I don’t hear you complaining when you go sauntering in there looking for something to borrow. Literally.  _ All _ the time.” 

“Hmm. Point taken,” Kara replied. “I have not had to buy a new dress in like three years. It’s honestly the only reason I hang out with you.” 

“Oh, really?” Lena said, her eyebrow quirking upwards devilishly, her hand tracing down Kara’s stomach, over the swell of her hip bone, and further down until she heard the satisfying sound of Kara’s breath hitching in her throat. “That’s the only reason?” 

“Okay,” Kara squeaked, her eyes rolling back slightly as Lena teased the outside of her folds with her middle and index finger. “Maybe two reasons.” 

Lena had to be careful about this new normal she had found with Kara. Like the way she spent every moment she could wrapped up in Kara, completely exposed and vulnerable in more ways than one. Or how she found peace in Kara’s laugh and meaning in the pursuit of her moan. These things could become addicting. And Lena couldn’t let herself fall this hard and this fast, not when this arrangement of theirs was only temporary. And even if Kara had suggested that they could be something more, Lena wouldn’t let herself get her hopes up. This seemed too...perfect to be sustainable. Too good to last. And good things never lasted for Lena. 

*

Lena didn’t realize she had fallen asleep next to Kara, after having done everything in her power to get her to relax, until she was jolted awake.

Well, she had done  _ almost _ everything. She had some more adventurous things in mind but...perhaps another time. 

Lena turned to see the source of what had woken her up. Her phone was ringing. Kara grumbled drowsily next to her. 

“Make it stop,” she whined into her pillow.

Lena rubbed her eyes, and saw Alex Danvers’ name on her screen. And while Lena was at least partly aware that Alex was trying to facetime her instead of just call, her grogginess and her knowledge of just how formidable Alex could be when her calls were ignored overruled that awareness long enough for Lena to answer it. Which meant that she accidentally gave Alex a full view of her and Kara lying in bed naked together.

“ _ Lena, hey. Sorry to bother you, but I needed to ask if-OH DEAR GOD! _ ” 

“Shit,” Lena and Kara exclaimed nearly in unison.

“ _ My eyes! _ ” Alex bemoaned dramatically. 

Lena dropped her phone in a panic. It landed with a smack on Kara’s bare shoulder, who flicked it off of her like it was a big spider.

“Lena!” Kara hissed. “Why did you answer?” 

“I wasn’t thinking!” 

“ _ I literally hate you guys so much, _ ” Alex’s muffled voice said from the cell phone that was now wedged between the pillows.

“Alex  _ hang up! _ ” Kara exclaimed as she made a mad dash to grab her discarded shirt off of the floor. 

“ _ I need to talk to you! _ ” Alex insisted. She didn’t bother to speak up despite the fact that neither Kara nor Lena were near the phone, likely assuming that Kara and her super hearing could hear her regardless.

“Right  _ now _ ?” Kara said, wrestling with the shirt over her head to find the opening. 

“ _ Hey! How was I supposed to know what you guys were...doing? How am I in the wrong here? I’m not the one answering a facetime while actively  _ violating _ the caller’s sister, thank you very much  _ Lena _. _ ” 

Lena, a bit shaken by the unfortunate turn of events but not nearly as much as Kara, slipped her own shirt on easily before picking the phone back up. 

“I’m not violating anyone,” Lena corrected. “Not right now, at least.” 

“ _ Oh...fuck you, Lena. _ ” Alex groaned. “ _ Just put Kara on the phone. _ ” 

Lena looked over, and saw that Kara had abandoned her attempts at getting dressed entirely in favor of crawling under the covers and hiding from sight in Lena’s bed, creating one big Kryptonian sized lump in her sheets. 

“She, uh,” Lena replied, trying not to chuckle. “She’s unavailable at the moment. Can I take a message?” 

Alex took a moment to hide her face behind her hand, composing herself. 

“ _ Fuck’s sake _ ,” Alex muttered under her breath. “ _ Look. I just wanted to see if Kara was okay. I saw her interview this morning, and something seemed wrong. And then she wasn’t answering her phone, and I got worried. But clearly...Kara is just fine. So. Thanks for the mental scarring. I’ll talk to you guys when I’m able to look you in the eye again _ .” 

“Wait, Alex, hang on,” Kara piped up, voice muffled under the sheets. 

Alex scowled, but didn’t hang up. Kara slithered her way up to the head of the bed, poking her head out just enough next to Lena to see Alex on the screen, but otherwise keeping herself completely under the covers. 

“Look, I did have a bit of an...episode earlier. Okay?” 

“ _ I knew it, _ ” Alex said with a regretful sigh, her concern for her sister almost immediately overruling her mortification over the current circumstances. “ _ Are you okay? _ ” 

“Yeah,” Kara replied softly. “I’m fine. Lena, uh...helped.”

Alex scoffed.

“ _ Apparently, _ ” she said, and made a point to gag dramatically. “ _ So...what? Are you guys dating now or something? _ ” 

Lena and Kara glanced at each other briefly, before stumbling over their words at the same time.

“Not exactly…” Lena began.

“It’s sort of a casual thing right now?” Kara said.

“Yeah, like-” Lena added.

“Like friends,” Kara clarified. “But with, um, other stuff happening…”

“Right. Yeah. I mean we  _ might _ , you know, at  _ some _ point-” Lena struggled.

“Yeah. But not, like, right  _ now _ . Ya know?” Kara said resolutely.

Alex was silent for a moment, her expression landing somewhere between annoyed and pissed.

“ _ You know, for a genius and a superhero, you guys sure can be really fucking clueless. _ ” she finally said, shaking her head. “ _ Just...call me later, okay? With your clothes on this time, please?”  _

“Okay,” Kara said ducking back under the sheets. “Love you,” she mumbled.

“ _ Love you, too, _ ” Alex said instinctively, and then hung up.

Lena let out a slow, tension relieving exhale once the call was over. 

“So, uh...that was sort of my bad.” she said. 

Kara popped out of her hiding place, looking at Lena incredulously. 

  
“Ya  _ think _ ?” she asked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys. How we holdin up? I sobbed like a baby last night because I saw a video of my toddler niece that made me realize she's literally growing up and I'm missing it. So that was fun. 
> 
> PS there will be more in depth smut scenes in this story, I just didn't feel like it in this chap lol
> 
> As always, stay safe, I love you, and I appreciate all of you so much for reading and reaching out to leave such wonderful feedback.  
> -Tess


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The workout video everyone has been requesting, more or less

“Can I ask you something?” 

Kara shifted, propping herself up against her pillow so she could look at Lena, who was lying pressed up against her, her face resting against Kara’s stomach, their desire to ever wear clothing discarded quite some time ago.

“Of course,” Kara replied, reaching down to pull Lena’s hair away from her face so she could better decipher the furrow of her eyebrows and the half smile on her lips.

“Why did it take you so long to make a move?” 

The noise Kara made in response to Lena’s question was somewhere between an amused chuckle and a scoff. 

“Me?” Kara asked incredulously. What about  _ you _ ?” 

“Kara,” Lena said point blank, tilting her head up so her chin rested against Kara’s navel as she looked up at her. “I have wanted to get you into bed since, like, day one. But I held back because you are the  _ queen _ of mixed messages.” 

Kara frowned. 

“I’m not saying this to tease you or anything,” Lena clarified, laying a stilling hand on Kara’s outer thigh. “I’m just curious to know what goes on in that big, beautiful brain of yours.” 

Kara licked her lips, contemplating her answer. 

“At the risk of sounding too...alien,” Kara began. 

“Oh, lay it on me,” Lena urged with a light hearted waggle of her eyebrows that Kara couldn’t help but laugh at. 

“It’s just...I don’t think you, or any humans, really, realize how  _ complicated _ you make relationships. I mean, I know I was young when…” Kara frowned, pushing past her trauma like she always did. “When I was last on Krypton but-” 

Lena shifted, abandoning her position on top of Kara so she could lie next to her, sharing her pillow and focusing on her face with almost unbroken attention. 

“I understood enough about my culture to know that compared to here,” Kara continued. “There weren’t nearly so many layers to intimacy as humans have created. There were just arranged pairings, to explain it simply. And it’s a good thing, in some ways, that humans are so... _ open _ with each other. So uninhibited. But it’s not always easy for me to adapt to the difference in culture, even now. So...when we met, you seemed to desire friendship, and I coded everything that happened after as that and nothing more, despite what other feelings I might have had.” 

Lena blinked, eyes transfixed by Kara’s words. It made Kara feel self conscious.

“To make a long explanation short,” Kara said with a nervous laugh. “The whole ‘friends with benefits’ thing is a foreign concept to me, to say the least.” 

Lena licked her lips, her eyes searching Kara’s face as she processed her words, before softening with a sly smile. 

“So you’re saying no one ever got a little frisky with anyone outside of marriage where you’re from?”

Kara rolled her eyes, lightheartedly tapping Lena’s shoulder in protest to her teasing. 

“I was thirteen when I was last on Krypton, Lena. That wasn’t exactly information I was privy to.” 

“Hmm,” Lena said, rolling over and putting her weight on her elbows so she could hover over Kara. “Well maybe we’re all a little more...complicated than meets the eye, hmm?”

Lena bent down to bring her lips to Kara’s, falling into the now all too familiar stupor her kiss gave her.

“Ooh, so philosophical for so early in the morning,” Kara replied when Lena finally pulled away.

“You started it.” 

“You’re right, I did,” Kara replied, and surged up to Lena to kiss her again with a soft giggle. 

Just as things started to heat up again, just as Lena started to roll her hips teasingly against Kara’s, a thought popped into her head that ruined the moment. 

“What should we do for the livestream today?” 

Lena sighed, dropping down onto the mattress.

“I don’t know. I’m running out of ideas. Other than Alex’s suggestion of a workout routine, I got nothing. And I definitely don’t-”

“Oh! A workout video! That would be perfect!” Kara said excitedly. 

Lena groaned. 

“Please no,” Lena pleaded. 

“Why not? It will be fun!” 

“Kara. Workouts are not fun for people without super powers. They are  _ work _ . Which I am trying to avoid at all costs. And besides, you in a sports bra might very easily break the internet.” 

“Then I won’t wear a sports bra,” Kara said simply. 

“No. Please do. I would very much like to see you bouncing around without a shirt on. Even if I have to share that sight with a few thousand other people.” 

“Yeah well, you’ll be there bouncing around right next to me.” 

“Hah!” Lena scoffed. “We’ll see about that.” 

*

“Good morning, everyone!” 

“Uh, Kara?” 

“Hmm?” 

“It’s 4:30.” 

“Oh yeah. I don’t know what time it is. Or what day it is.” 

“Something keeping you distracted lately?” Lena mused absently, but gave Kara a pointed, amused look. 

“Anyhow!” Kara pressed, ignoring Lena’s suggestive question. “Sorry about not updating yesterday.” 

“Kara,” Lena warned.

“Right. We don’t apologize for taking mental health days. Thank you, Lena. But still, I know a lot of you guys were disappointed. So to make up for it we’re doing a video that a lot of you have been requesting.” 

Kara glanced at the comments section before continuing. 

_ “Kara you can’t just wear a sports bra without WARNING US” _

_ “Sports bra…” _

_ “SPORTS BRA”  _

_ “SPORTS BRA?!?!?!” _

“Oh my gosh!” Kara said, crossing her arms in front of her stomach and moving to get up. “I’m putting a tank top on.” 

“Don’t you dare,” Lena insisted suddenly, popping up in the shot of the camera after having been hiding just out of view. 

“I am being objectified!” Kara insisted jokingly. 

“Yes! By me! So keep it on.” 

Kara narrowed her eyes at Lena. They hadn’t had any video updates since the nature of their relationship had changed. And now Kara felt like she had forgotten how to play the game they had created to mess with and amuse the viewers. Was what Lena said too forward? Had they been this flirtatious before? Were they already risking people finding out that the will they/won’t they question had already been answered? (Answered so many times, in fact, that Kara had lost count)

“Well how come you get to wear a t-shirt?” 

“Uh. because this skin has not seen the sun in so long that I am concerned that it’s whiteness might blind someone. Also because if either of us is gonna show some skin, it’s gonna be the girl with abs for days.” 

“Ugh,” Kara groaned. “Fine. Let’s get started, shall we?” 

“Hang on, one quick thing I want to do,” Lena said, and all but yanked Kara’s laptop away from her and started clacking away on it. 

“What are you doing?” 

“I’m sick of trying to speed read through all the comments while we’re in the middle of making these videos trying to see what everyone is saying. So,” she made a few final, reslute clacks on the keyboard. “I made a text to speech generator that will randomly read out incoming comments.” 

“Oh, I think that’s giving them way too much power.” 

“Only one way to find out,” Lena said with a wink, and started up the program. 

Right on cue, a robotic but feminine sounding voice rang out from Kara’s laptop.

_ “Oh, good,” _ it said.  _ “Now they’ll be able to hear us calling them out on all the eye fucking.” _

“Hey!” Kara exclaimed. “No swearing! I mean it!” 

*

“You gonna join me or what?” Kara said, holding herself in a planked position as she looked to Lena expectantly, not wanting to do all the push ups herself.

“Don’t think so, no,” Lena said, sitting cross legged on her yoga mat next to Kara. 

“Oh, come on! I need you to participate a  _ little _ bit.” 

“Do you, though?” Lena asked defiantly.

_ “I haven’t gotten off my couch in two days, but Kara can carry on a conversation while planking like it’s nothing. Rude as hell.”  _

Kara chuckled. 

“This is so weird. It’s like there’s a third person in the apartment with us,” she said. 

“It’s like Siri but thirsty as hell,” Lena commented, reaching over to grab a book from the end table next to her.” 

“Lena! No reading! Do a push up, dang it!” 

“Push ups are not my idea of a workout.” 

“Then what is?” Kara asked. 

Lena raised an eyebrow at Kara, daring her to figure out what she was thinking. 

_ “Are you guys serious right now? Are you freaking serious?” _ a comment sounded out. 

“Lena, you can’t just sit there the whole time.” 

Lena pursed her lips, shut her book, and got up.    
  


“Fine. I won’t.” 

Lena moved to stand over Kara. Kara didn’t break her form, she only glanced up at Lena curiously. Lena moved to sit on Kara’s back, slowly bringing her legs up off the ground until she had found her balance and crossed them in front of her over Kara’s shoulders. Kara felt no discomfort from this with all her strength, but she made a point to pantomime a struggle to adjust to Lena’s weight for a second for the sake of the viewers and her identity. Lena settled comfortably on top of Kara, and opened her book.

“Okay. Now I’m sitting  _ here _ . Do your pushups.” 

“May I ask what the point of this is?” Kara asked, trying to resist the urge to roll Lena off of her and pin her to the ground. 

“Core workout. I have to keep my balance up here, after all.” 

Kara shook her head, restraining a giggle. It was true, though. Kara began to wiggle and shift under Lena’s weight as a challenge, and Lena stayed put, keeping her composure in her perched position on top of Kara.

Kara groaned, feigning annoyance for the sake of the viewers, though truthfully she was delighted by the change in Lena’s position. Adjusting her stance a bit, Kara took a tentative dip down to see if she could pull off doing push ups with Lena on top of her without accidentally throwing her off or seeming a little  _ too _ superhuman. When Lena stayed put, Kara felt confident enough to do a couple of reps in a row. Only she could hear the soft, appreciative moan Lena let out in response to Kara’s indulgent show of strength.

_ “That’s it,” _ the computer vocalized via the comment section.  _ “I’m done. I’m going to burst into flames. This is too much.”  _

“Yeah, maybe that’s enough showing off for now, Kara,” Lena said with a knowing wink.

“You started it,” Kara replied. 

“True,” Lena said, hopping off of Kara’s back. “But let’s do something that’s an actual challenge for you, shall we?” 

“I _ s it bottoming? _ ” the voice from the computer piped in. 

“Oh, please,” Lena said, turning to the camera with a devilish grin. “If we’re going to debate our  _ theoretical _ power dynamics, we’re going to need to set aside more time than we have today.” 

“I have no idea what’s going on. What are you guys talking about?” Kara asked, bewildered. 

“Don’t worry about it,” Lena said quickly, tapping the underside of Kara’s chin with her index finger. “Come on. I want to try something other than your blatant display of brute force.” 

“Like what?” Kara asked.

“Something more subtle, like yoga.” 

Kara made a point to pantomime gagging. 

“What’s wrong with yoga?” Lena asked, offended. 

“Nothing! I just...I don’t like it. It’s boring. You just...roll around. I need more of a challenge.” 

“Let me ask you this. Do you ever stretch your muscles before a workout? Like, ever?” 

Kara frowned. 

“No?” she replied.

“That’s what I thought. Lay down on the mat.” 

Kara sighed, and layed down on the yoga mat Lena had been inhabiting up until now. 

“ _ Knew it. Kara’s a bottom, _ ” the comments sounded out.

“Lena, tell me what that means,” Kara insisted.

“I will not,” Lena said with an over exaggerated glare at the camera.

Lena proceeded to show Kara a few basic poses, and Kara realized just how flexible she  _ wasn’t _ compared to Lena. Which definitely explained some of the things Lena was able to pull off in the bedroom that Kara couldn’t, even with her kryptonian advantage. Still, needing to be helped into every position Lena tried to instruct her into had its perks. Namely that Lena’s hands were on Kara a  _ lot.  _ And while Lena attempted to keep her hands in appropriate places for the sake of the camera, Kara couldn’t help but wish she could turn the laptop away for a moment of privacy as Lena’s hand slid slowly from Kara’s knee up her thigh as she corrected her form on her gate pose. 

“Do you feel that?” Lena asked, voice barely above a murmur, looking down at Kara’s form with complete focus. 

Kara gulped.

“Feel what, exactly?” she asked, trying to keep her voice from breaking into a squeak. 

Lena glanced over to meet Kara’s gaze, saw the heady look on her face, and went a bit red. 

“The stretch of this muscle, Kara,” Lena said, poking her hamstring and shaking her head. 

“Oh! Yeah. Totally,” Kara replied. 

_ “I’m literally sitting in my room screaming right now. Like, are you kidding? Are you guys (beeeep) kidding me right now?”  _

The moment derailed by the sudden vocalized comment was enough for Kara to break off from her pose and Lena’s touch with a scolding look at the laptop.

“See, I told you I could get the program to censor swear words,” Lena said triumphantly.

“Still,” Kara replied. “I think the audio fix to the comments was a one time deal. I think I’d rather not know what is happening in the comments all the time, for the sake of my sanity. And,” Kara said with a suggestive glance in Lena’s direction. “I’m all yoga-d out anyhow. So.” She got up and walked over to where the laptop was mounted. “See you guys tomorrow!”

When the livestream was over, Kara let out a relieved sigh.

“Okay. That was harder than I thought it would be.” 

“I don’t know what you mean” Lena replied, flopping back onto her yoga mat casually. 

“Oh, come on, Lena! You weren’t a little bit  _ flustered _ trying to keep our, you know, physical needs in control on camera?” 

Lena arched an eyebrow at Kara.

“That’s a very wordy way of saying that you were horny as fuck the whole time.” 

“Wow,” Kara said with a playful eyeroll. 

“What? Am I wrong?” Lena asked, tossing her hair back as she leaned against her elbows on the yoga mat, looking up at Kara and licking her lips. Which was completely  _ unfair _ . 

Kara glanced at the laptop, paranoid enough about the camera despite having made sure the livestream had ended that she shut it and turned it to face the opposite direction. 

“No,” Kara admitted, and closed the distance between them until she was hovering over Lena on the yoga mat, holding herself up with one hand next to each of Lena’s shoulders.

Lena surged up to connect her lips with Kara’s, causing Kara to moan happily into Lena’s mouth. The need she felt for her was getting out of hand. They had spent all morning until nearly noon in bed together and already Kara was eager to overwhelm Lena all over again. This felt like the least ‘casual’ casual sex she had ever had. This felt more like an addiction.

“Hey,” Lena said, pulling away from Kara suddenly. “There’s something I want to try with you.” 

An eager heat formed immediately between Kara’s legs in response. Kara would try just about anything if she got to try it with Lena, who had so far been more in tune with Kara’s body and what it wanted than anyone else she had ever been with. Kara didn’t think she would ever be able to go back to mediocre guys fumbling and struggling to please her ever again.

“Okay,” Kara said, breathless.

“Okay, just...don’t be mad when I show you what it is,” Lena said warily.

  
Kara furrowed her brow. What in Rao’s name did  _ that _ mean?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hint. Lena has some...accessories she's been wanting to try out...
> 
> Oh and ps I'm starting to get to the point that I have no idea what to do with this story/the video updates. So. Ideas as usual are always welcome. I actually use a lot of what you guys give me, in one way or another, and that's def been a fun perk of this story. 
> 
> Tho tbh I don't know how long the quarantine aspect of this story can keep up now that (at least where i live) everyone has decided the pandemic is over and is just doing whatever the fuck they want...
> 
> ANYHOW. Love yinz,   
> Tess


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> HI IM BACK WITH KARA WEARING A STRAP

“Just...promise you won’t be mad when I show you this,” Lena said, emerging from her walk-in closet with a shoebox in her hands. 

Kara was sitting on the floor of the bedroom, legs apart in front of her like she was waiting for Lena to fill the gap they left.

“Lena, that’s an incredibly concerning way to solicit sex from your friend,” Kara said.

“Listen,” Lena said with a light chuckle at Kara’s sass. “It’s just that...this is something that I think will really help you, or help  _ us _ , but...it’s something you might not want to exist.” 

Kara narrowed her eyes at Lena, feeling more confused the more Lena talked around the eventual reveal of whatever it was she had tucked away in a shoe box in her closet. Really, how bad could something be if it could fit in a shoe box? 

“Just show me,” Kara said, impatient to know what on Earth it was, and also just wanting Lena to be touching her again already.

Lena let out a deep exhale, biting her lower lip and staring at Kara as she built up the nerve for the reveal. It reminded Kara of the time Lena asked her to come to her gala when she first moved to National City, saying that she was her only friend in town.

Look at where they were now. 

Finally, Lena sunk down to the floor, putting her weight on her knees in the space Kara had made for her between her legs. She popped the lid off the box and pulled out something circular in shape tucked into a small, black velvet bag. Lena pulled the object out of the bag, and Kara could see what looked like a small red bangle bracelet that had an unnatural red glow to it, suggesting that there was more to it than met the eye. 

Lena was looking at Kara as she held the bangle in her palm like she was waiting for a certain kind of reaction. Kara could only roll her lips together in a blank smile. 

“I dunno what I’m looking at here,” she said. 

“Oh! Right, sorry. Um, here,” Lena said, visibly anxious as she reached out to slide the bracelet onto Kara’s wrist. Kara watched Lena’s expression closely as she did so, how it switched from anxious to curious in the way it did right before she began a new experiment.

“Why are you so nervous over this?” Kara asked. 

“You’ll see,” Lena replied. “How do you feel?” 

Kara furrowed her brow. 

“I feel-” Kara replied, ready to make some smartass remark, before she suddenly felt a strange sensation. Something was...missing. Off, even. It was like a fuse on a switch box had been shut off. “Huh. That’s...what is this?” 

Lena cleared her throat, eyes fixed on the bangle on Kara’s wrist, avoiding her gaze.

“Well,” she said, running her fingers through her hair. “It’s a yellow sun inhibitor. Or a red sun simulator. Both, I guess,” she stammered. “I just...I know how anxious you get about losing control of your strength in the bedroom, and I wanted to help. And it wasn’t until after I made this when I was bored the other day that I realized I sort of...accidentally...made a device that shuts off your powers. Which technically could be classified as a weapon against you. But...I really just made it so that…”

“So I wouldn’t be afraid of hurting you.” 

Lena smiled softly. 

“Yeah,” she said. 

Kara frowned, looking down at the thing on her wrist. 

“You made this because you were bored?” 

“And horny.” 

“But how did… _ when _ did...”

“I popped by the lab at LCorp to check on a few things. Started tinkering around. And...voila.”

Kara couldn’t help but chuckle. Of course Lena managed to come up with a device to shut Kara’s powers off on a whim just because. And she should have been mad. Knowing that it was so easy for Lena to create a piece of tech that took away Kara’s powers should have been alarming to her. But instead Kara felt...curious. She got up off the floor and walked around the open area of the bedroom for a second, as if just walking around for a few steps would prove to her that her powers were truly diminished. But she needed a real test. 

Wordlessly, Kara walked into the bathroom, and placed both hands on the vanity countertop, her left palm fitting into the dent she had made when she’d lost control earlier in the day after Lena had overwhelmed her unexpectedly when she got out of the shower. Kara gripped the vanity tightly in both hands, and squeezed. Lightly at first, and then harder and harder as she tested the limits of herself and the vanity. But no matter how hard she squeezed, she couldn’t get it to crack or break. 

“Huh,” Kara said softly, removing her hands from the counter and looking at them as if they were foreign to her. 

“Kara?” Lena asked from the bedroom. “I’m kind of freaking out wondering if you’re mad at me or not.” 

Kara padded out of the bathroom and into the bedroom, looking almost blankly down at Lena as her thoughts raced over the possibilities. Her powers were gone. She could really feel it now. She could sense them, somewhere deep beneath the surface, but she couldn't conjure them up with the bracelet on. 

“I’m not mad,” she said resolutely. 

“Really?” Lena asked, looking up at her like she didn’t believe her.

“Yeah,” Kara breathed, still distracted from the strange sensation of being without her abilities until her eyes focused on Lena long enough to see just how distressed she seemed as she looked up at Kara. And then she remembered why Lena had given her the bracelet in the first place. “Come here,” Kara said, holding out a hand.

Lena took it and pulled herself to her feet, Kara pulling her in with her grip on her hand until they were standing a few inches apart. She wished Lena wasn’t always waiting for them to fight, waiting for things to blow up in her face. Kara wasn’t a Luthor. She loved Lena in a way that wasn’t conditional and couldn’t be rescinded on a whim or flash of anger. And she wanted Lena to understand that. She wanted her to know that she wasn’t angry with her, and that even if she could be, it wouldn’t change how much she cared about her. But unfortunately she was a better wordsmith on paper than in person, so she resigned to pull Lena in and kiss her, hoping the movement of her lips and the desperate clutch of her hands against Lena’s sides could convey what she wished she could say.

It didn’t take long for Kara to get lost in the moment, for Lena’s fingernails scraping gently against Kara’s scalp to send a shiver down her spine and make her forget what they had even been talking about. In moments like this Kara couldn’t help but hear this ridiculous mantra in her head, over and over: This is Lena. This is Lena. Fuck, it’s  _ Lena _ . It had started off as a way to try and ground herself, ro remind herself that this arrangement was temporary and that she had to keep her emotions and her needs in check so she wouldn’t screw this up. But now it just made everything worse. It made Kara even more undone, made her crave Lena all the more, made her feel drunk with desire because fuck, it’s  _ Lena _ .

As Lena’s hands gripped Kara’s belt loop and tugged, pulling her back towards the bed, a familiar wave of panic washed over Kara, warning her to control herself, and her powers, before she lost control and risked hurting Lena. But then Kara remembered the bangle on her wrist. She stopped, pulling away from Lena slightly to catch her breath and get her bearings.

“So I-” Kara breathed, trying not to look Lena in the eyes for too long because it would just make her lose control that much faster. “I can’t hurt you?” 

“No more than any regular human could.” 

“I-” Kara began, but again was lost for words. 

Curious, she gripped Lena’s thighs and lifted her up off the ground, a move she had done countless times so she could drop her onto the bed, or the couch, or Lena's at-home desk that one time…

She could still lift Lena relatively easily, but she definitely had to put effort into it as opposed to the usual, which was more like lifting someone in water.

Her fingertips dug into Lena’s thighs as she carried her towards the bed, partly to keep her grip and partly because she wanted to. Kara couldn’t help but giggle as she dropped Lena on the bed, she felt absolutely giddy over the possibilities. 

“I don’t even…” Kara said as she made quick work of pulling Lena’s tank top over her head and tossing it aside so she could put her mouth on Lena’s collarbone, the swell of her breasts, and the dip of her stomach at her navel with an occasional drag of her teeth against Lena’s skin that made Lena shiver. Kara wasn’t normally a biter, but she could get into it if she was sure she wouldn’t accidentally  _ really _ bite Lena. “I don’t even know where to begin...there’s so many possibilities…” 

Lena groaned as Kara nipped at her hip bone. 

“Can I make a suggestion?” Lena asked.

Kara looked up from Lena’s stomach to see her eyes positively dark with lust. Lena had something specific in mind. And Kara was eager to find out what that was. 

“There’s just one more thing I’ll want you to put on first.” 

Kara arched an eyebrow at Lena. So it was gonna be an accessories kind of night, huh?

*

“You’re sure about this?” 

“Uh, Kara. I’m the girl with a drawer full of sex toys. Trust me, I’m sure.” 

“I do have to say, this one is more comfortable than I thought it would be,” Kara said. “It’s just...I mean-” 

“You’ve never worn a strap?” Lena supplied.

“Exactly.” 

Lena shrugged as she laid back on the bed, propped up by her elbows, admiring Kara and her extra appendage.

“Well, I think it looks great on you,” she said.

“Really?”

“Yup.” 

“Is it weird that we’re having such a casual conversation about strap-ons right now?”

Lena shrugged with a muted chuckle. 

“Maybe,” she said. “But it is sort of the elephant in the room at the moment.”

“You mean the elephant  _ trunk _ ,” Kara said, looking down at the considerable size of the strap Lena had picked out for her to put on.

“Oh my god!” Lena said, rolling to one side as she laughed at Kara’s comment. “Okay! I get it! I have a size preference.” 

“Look, no judgement, I just wish I’d known earlier that you were after this much...girth.” 

“Are you gonna keep teasing me or are you gonna fuck me already?” 

“Ooh, so bossy,” Kara said with a chuckle as she walked to the edge of the bed, standing over Lena and trying not to bump her awkwardly with the strap. It really did get in the way more than she thought it would. “Now flip over.” 

“Now who’s bossy?” Lena challenged, though she obliged almost immediately. 

This had been Lena’s idea after all, and she was keen to let Kara overwhelm her, take over her body with as much power as she could unleash on her in her current mortal state. And Kara had to admit, of any of the ways she could have imagined being able to explore her sexual boundaries without fear of excessive strength or injury, this probably was the best idea possible.

“Safe word?” Kara asked, unapologetically staring at Lena’s ass as she laid at the edge of the bed for her. Unable to resist, Kara reached out, tracing the slight indent of Lena’s spine down to her lower back and then tracing around to the swell of Lena’s hip bone and down until Lena shuddered from the contact.

“You won’t need it,” Lena murmured.

Kara hummed, leaning down until her mouth was against Lena’s ear.

“You trust your tech too much,” she replied, fingers tracing Lena’s slick folds, by now knowing the feel of them by heart.

“No,” Lena said as her breath hitched. “I trust  _ you _ . Still...how about ‘potstickers’?”

Kara gasped in mock horror, stilling her hand.

“The only thing that could distract me from sex?” she asked. Lena nodded. “Fair.” Kara let out a long exhale. “Okay. Ready?”

“Whole lot of build up, don’t you think, Kara?” 

“Oh, shush. I’ve never done this before, remember?”

“No time like the present,” Lena said impatiently, goading Kara on just enough to get her past her strap related anxieties.

Knowing how much Lena wanted this from Kara was enough to bring her focus back, enough to inspire her to rise to the challenge.

Figuratively speaking. 

Kara gripped Lena’s hips and pulled her back, more roughly than she would have let herself under normal circumstances, closer to the edge of the bed. Lena hummed approvingly, in a state of submission to Kara’s every whim that Kara hadn’t yet seen in her lover. The knowledge that she could handle Lena this way without fear or worry gave her a rush, made her feel as powerful as she did when she put on her suit. But as worked up as Kara was, she still had to try not to laugh as she took the appendage in her hand and guided it to where Lena was eagerly awaiting her. Something about the texture of the rubber just made Kara chuckle, she couldn’t help it. 

And then Kara pressed the extension of herself into Lena, heard Lena groan and buck against the pressure of it, and vowed to never talk ill of a strap ever again.

“ _ Fuck _ , Kara,” Lena breathed, her fingernails digging into the sheets beneath her to keep a grip on something as Kara pushed in further. 

“Is this okay?” Kara asked, sure that Lena would use the safe word if she didn’t feel comfortable but still needing to check in on her anyway. 

Lena pulled her dark hair to one side of her neck so she could try and look back at Kara. 

“God, yeah.” 

Lena’s confirmation put Kara completely at ease as she found her rhythm. She had no fear, no worry that she might go too far. Not when Lena only grew louder and more eager for more the deeper and harder Kara thrusted. She’d never felt this powerful in the bedroom before. So in control. 

Kara could get used to this. 

As Kara sunk deeper into Lena, she gripped her hair, pulling it back just enough that Kara could lower her face closer to Lena’s ear. 

“Is this what you wanted all along? For Supergirl to fuck you senseless?” 

Lena shuddered and then nodded. 

“Good. Because that’s exactly what I’m gonna do,” Kara murmured as she got lost in a fierce and unforgiving pace, enjoying the friction of the strap against her center as much as she enjoyed watching Lena squirm and pant and she came closer and closer to her climax. 

And honestly? It was exhausting being mortal and keeping up with what Lena wanted as her body went rigid, nearly there. Kara fucked her with a reckless abandon until Lena screamed Kara’s name, screamed for Supergirl, for every name Kara possessed, until she collapsed against the bed, Kara nearly collapsing on top of her, spent from the exertion.

“Lena?” Kara asked, rolling off of her. 

“Hmm?” Lena asked, still panting. 

“I know I’ve said this before,” Kara said, touching the bangle on her wrist with her other hand. “But you’re a fucking genius.” 

Lena laughed, rolling closer to Kara as she did so. 

*

“Kara, do you want some tea?” 

“Um, I would  _ love _ some tea,” Kara exclaimed, voice muffled through her mask. She was genuinely amped at the thought of having a cup of tea with Lena. 

Lena shook her head at Kara’s excessive excitement, and through a couple boxes of tea into the cart.

This was probably the first time Lena had really left the apartment to go anywhere but LCorp since things had gotten nuts. Kara had offered to go shopping for her, but Lena insisted, saying that ‘Do you know what happens when you isolate a Luthor from even bare minimum social interaction? Lex. That’s what happens. I’m going with you.” 

Kara’s jaw was starting to ache from unknowingly clenching and easing it to keep her mask over her nose. She knew she didn’t need to wear it, but she wasn’t going to be one of those assholes not wearing one like some bullshit political statement, either. So she would wear it. Even if it was hot and annoying and refused to stay put. 

Her jaw might also be a little sore from going down on Lena for a decent bit of time after their strap experiment, followed by a lot of making out, followed by Lena getting a bit power hungry herself, eager to find Kara’s limits without her powers.

Kara had honestly been a bit sad to see the scratch and bite marks on her back and neck disappear once she took the bracelet off.

Contrary to Kara’s complaints about her mask, however, Lena had managed to make mask wearing look couture. What with her custom made L-Corp one, all black with silver iridescent print that matched her jumper perfectly. 

“What’s next on the list?” Lena asked. 

“Hmm?” Kara asked, realizing she’d lost her train of thought while staring at Lena and the way the fabric of her jumper hugged her ass so perfectly. “Oh. Um...jerky.”

Lena furrowed her brow. 

“Jerky?” she asked, as if even saying it was unappealing to her.

“What?” Kara asked. “I like jerky. And I need the protein to keep my strength up,” she said with a wink. 

Lena rolled her eyes. 

“You could just not use the bracelet next time and strength wouldn’t be an issue.” 

“Lena,” Kara said, leaning against the cart Lena was pushing until her mask brushed against Lena’s shoulder, “I’m going to wear it every single time.” 

Lena turned to look Kara in the eye, likely smirking beneath her mask though Kara didn’t bother to check because she could identify that look just from her eyes. 

“And how many more times might that be?” she asked. 

It was a dare on Lena’s part, one that she had been slowly escalating since their sexual relationship had begun. She was expecting Kara to end this arrangement, and by reminding her about their agreement like this, she was trying to force Kara to make the call already, so she could brace herself for its end. Which was almost cruel for Lena to do now, after opening so many doors of what they could do with each other and  _ to _ each other. Perhaps Lena did so by design, more attached to the idea of keeping their agreement in place longer than they'd agreed than she would admit point blank. 

Instead of answering Lena’s question, Kara bolted past her and their cart full of a ridiculous medley of Lena’s healthy food and Kara’s junk food in search of some jerky. It at least gave her a moment to breathe and gather her thoughts instead of answering Lena’s question right then and there. 

When Lena found Kara with the cart again, she didn't say anything else on the topic. Mostly because Kara had found a way to distract from the situation. 

“What is that?” Kara said, pointing at a box near the top of the pile of groceries in their cart. 

“What? You said you wanted chicken nuggets.” 

“Those are  _ not _ chicken nuggets,” Kara said, offended, as she pulled the box out of the cart to inspect it. “These are  _ vegan _ .” 

“So? They’re healthier.” 

“They’re an abomination, Lena.” 

“You haven’t even tried them!” Lena insisted.

“Yeah! And I never will!” Kara replied stubbornly.

“Oh my  _ god _ ,” Lena groaned in response to Kara’s complaints. “You are ridiculous. And we’re buying them. Because I already touched them.” 

Kara groaned again, loudly, until Lena threw the box at her just to get her to stop. Kara swatted it away with a laugh.

It was strange. Everyone else in the store seemed stressed, annoyed, and unhappy to be there. Couples were snapping at each other, shoppers were huffing and puffing in annoyance as they tried to follow the single direction arrows of the aisles. But Lena and Kara were laughing, joking, enjoying themselves. What was so different about them compared to everyone else?

“This is fun,” Kara blurted out. 

Lena tilted her head. 

“What? Shopping?” she asked. 

Kara shrugged coyly. 

“Yeah.” she replied. “I guess.”

Lena tapped the handle of the shopping cart, considering what Kara said. 

“You know what? You’re right. Which is weird because I normally hate shopping.” 

“Me too. Everything seems better with you,” Kara said, and moved to lean in close to Lena.

But then she paused, face just hovering next to Lena’s as she realized she couldn’t just kiss her. Not only because of the masks, but because they weren’t in the private solace of Lena’s apartment, and they weren’t dating. 

“What were you gonna do?” Lena asked, glancing down at where Kara’s mouth would be if it weren’t for the piece of fabric concealing it. 

Kara sighed heavily. 

“I don’t know,” she said, sounding defeated. 

They were relatively quiet up until they got to the checkout, which had ridiculously long lines, made even longer by stickers on the ground indicating how shoppers should space themselves out, and suddenly they had nothing but time to kill as their frozen goods slowly thawed before their eyes. Kara shifted her weight from one foot to the other next to the cart agitatedly, all of a sudden far less tolerant of their surroundings now that she realized she couldn’t kiss Lena, or even touch her without it feeling wrong. Not just because all touching in public seemed wrong now, but because they weren’t dating. That hadn’t mattered until now, outside of the little universe they’d created inside Lena’s apartment where that hadn’t stopped them from developing a reckless and inevitable addiction to each other.

“You know,” Lena said, “We should probably talk about what we’re doing. With each other.” 

It wasn’t lost on Kara that Lena chose to bring this up when they were stuck in a check out line at the grocery store, so that neither of them could distract from the issue with a kiss or roaming hands. Kara sighed, pushing down the urge to just ditch the cart and walk away just for a moment so she could gather her thoughts. The combination of the crowd piled up at the checkouts, their tense energy and anxieties, and Lena’s expectant look at Kara all caught up to her at once, and she felt fidgety and restless and desperate to just  _ leave _ .

“If you insist,” Kara replied, her jaw clenched painfully. 

“Kara,” Lena said softly, sensing Kara’s agitation and reaching out to touch her forearm. 

Kara’s eyes turned downwards to the floor and the bright orange circle marking where they should stand in line, moving to adjust her glasses before remembering she had left them in the car when she realized they were just going to fog up the whole time. Hopefully the mask, paired with her hair in a messy bun and her very unheroic sweatpants and t-shirt were as effective at hiding her identity as the glasses had proven to be.

“Is it so wrong for me to just be happy with the way things are?” Kara asked, finding it easier to stare at the circle on the ground than meet Lena’s gaze.

Lena removed her hand from Kara’s arm with a soft sigh.

“Not at all,” Lena said. “Honestly, I feel the same way. But it’s not exactly sustainable. I mean, if we’re going to compare the current pandemic to the rest of history, we can surmise than soon people are going to start trying to live their lives like normal again, which will cause another spike, and then we might have to go through this whole lockdown process again from step one. So that’s potentially  _ months _ if not upwards of a  _ year _ of...this,” she said, gesturing generally to the people in the store. 

Kara knew she was right. Lena had all but gotten another PhD in pandemics since this had started just to keep herself informed. And she had tried to explain all of this to Kara, who heard her and understood the reality, but wanted to pretend that her misguided optimism was just as valid an argument as Lena’s fact based cynicism. 

“What’s your point?” Kara asked, busying her hands by pushing all the cold stuff into one part of the cart to keep them together before it all went to shit from sitting out so long. 

“Just that...I mean, it was a nice idea when this all started, to do the livestream and to hang out together at my apartment. And everything else that's happened because of it…”

“You mean the sex?” Kara asked, leaning in to Lena a bit so she could speak quietly enough to keep from being overheard, and hoping her closeness and her bluntless would deviate Lena from her train of thought. She didn’t have to see Lena’s mouth to know she was frowning light heartedly at her.

“Fine. The  _ sex _ has been amazing,” Lena conceded. “And I wouldn’t trade the time we’ve spent together, in every form we spent it, for anything in the world. But, if this new normal is going to continue on longer than we anticipated, then...Well, how long would you truly want to continue to stay with me?”

The way Lena had worded that question seemed important. She didn’t discern if she wanted to know how long Kara wanted to stay with her, as in living with her, or how long Kara would want to stay  _ with _ her. 

And what would her answer be? It was a little ridiculous that Kara had been away from her home so long already, where all her things were, where she still had to pay rent. But on the other hand…

“As long as you let me?” Kara replied softly. 

Lena paused.

“Really?” she asked.

“Well, yeah!” Kara nearly burst. “I mean...I got used to living alone because I had to, you know? I could never have a roommate without risking them finding out about me. But honestly? It  _ sucks _ living alone. I hate it. And I don’t think I realized how much I hated it until I started staying with you.” 

“But Kara we’re...you know…” Lena pressed.

“Fucking?” Kara asked, a little more loudly than Lena had expected, judging by the flush that formed on the part of her cheeks that were still visible. 

“Yes,” she hissed, eyes darting around to see if anyone was listening in. 

Kara would be offended, if she didn’t remember Lena being just as paranoid to talk about her sex life in public when she was dating James. Still, it was a little ridiculous that someone who had no qualms about  _ screaming _ Kara’s name for the whole apartment building to hear while she got railed by her and her strap was suddenly so shy to talk about it. 

“It just...it makes things complicated, Kara,” Lena continued. “I mean when we started to, you know- _ don’t  _ say it again,” Lena said, holding up a hand to Kara’s face before she could say ‘fucking’ again. “This whole situation seemed temporary and just abnormal enough to let lapses in judgement slide. Now you’re saying you want to actively choose to keep living with me indefinitely. I just...I think we need to draw a line in the sand here.” 

“Fine,” Kara said, stepping back from Lena and looking down at the ground like it was the sand Lena spoke of. “Where should we draw it, then?” 

“If you want to keep staying with me? We should probably draw it at the fucking.” 

Someone cleared their throat. Lena and Kara looked up to see that the line had moved and they hadn’t noticed it, since they were too busy saying or not saying the word ‘fucking’. Which, as weird as it sounded, was getting Kara a little riled up. And seeing as she was getting riled up while Lena was suggesting that they stop _ fucking. _ ..

“Do you really think that’s necessary?” Kara asked, trying not to let her voice squeak with desperation, hoping she could talk Lena out of even thinking of going back to being just friends.

“Kara,” Lena implored. “Come on. You don’t think living together and hooking up  _ and _ still trying to be friends isn’t going to get a little complicated?” 

“...No?” Kara replied stubbornly, before succumbing to the stern look Lena gave her. “Fine. Okay. So what you’re saying is you want me to choose between hooking up with you and living with you?” 

“More or less.” 

“Ugh,” Kara said, leaning against the cart slightly. “Why do you have to be so rational all the time?” 

“It’s a curse,” Lena said in a monotone voice, purposely keeping her true feelings from showing. “So? What do you want to do?” 

Kara bit her lower lip, thinking. She felt like this conversation would be a lot easier if they weren’t so far apart, so fully clothed, and with these annoying ass  _ masks _ on. 

Kara realized that it was their turn to check out. She pulled the cart by its front over to the belt so she could unload it. She looked up at the cashier and gave her a cordial smile, only then realizing that she wouldn’t be able to see it. Regardless, the girl’s eyes went wide as they locked on Kara’s. For a moment, Kara panicked, wondering if her identity had somehow been compromised.

“Oh my god I can’t believe it’s you!” the cashier said.

Kara was about to bolt just as Lena grabbed her wrist, steadying her. 

“I’m sorry,” Lena said, “I think you’re mistaken-”

“Holy shit!” the girl said, voice muffled by her rainbow cat paw printed mask. “I just have to say, I watch like,  _ all _ of your live streams. I love them so much.”

Both Kara and Lena sighed in relief. 

“Oh!” Kara said, dumping all five bags of chips she had insisted on buying onto the belt. “Right. The videos.”

“Seriously,” the girl continued. “I look forward to your videos so much. Sometimes it’s the only good thing about my day.” 

“I-” Kara struggled, overwhelmed by the girl’s earnestness. “Well, uh, thank you!” 

Kara didn’t know why this recognition felt so unexpected. Maybe it was because up until now, the fact that they had a lot of viewers still just presented itself as numbers and words on a screen. There weren’t real faces to associate with Lena and Kara’s sudden internet popularity. Now, actually seeing someone in real life who had been enthusiastically watching their videos made it all much more real than just a few moments ago. Which was nice, and also sobering. Kara had been so wrapped up in Lena that she had forgotten why they had started this whole thing in the first place. This wasn’t about her, or what she wanted from Lena. It was about being there for people like this cashier on the other side of the plexiglass barrier. 

“I have to ask,” the girl said as she scanned through the ungodly amounts of junk food Kara lined up on the belt, much to Lena’s embarrassment. “Are you two...you know…” 

Kara looked at Lena, trying to contain a swell of conflicting emotions, and sighed.

“Nope. We just live together,” Kara said. 

Lena gave Kara a regretful smile, understanding what she was saying. They were doing something important here, even if it didn’t always feel like it and even if they forgot at times. And that held more weight in their decision of how to proceed than their horniness or their inability to just figure out what the fuck they were doing...

“Really?” the cashier pressed. “That’s all? because it just seems like…”

Both Lena and Kara looked at the girl at the same time, apparently giving a look charged enough to make her go quiet and smile awkwardly as she finished scanning their items. At least, Kara assumed it was a smile. She couldn’t quite tell anymore.

After Kara and Lena scuffled for a minute over who would pay the bill (they ended up splitting it, with Lena picking up the heavier half because she was quicker with the math than Kara) Lena paused before Kara took off towards the exit of the store, sick to death of being there. 

“What’s your name?” she asked the cashier. “We’ll give you a shout out tonight.” 

The girl’s eyes went wide. 

“Really?” she asked eagerly. “Can I get a pic with you guys, too?” 

Lena laughed lightly. 

“Sure,” she said, ushering for Kara to come back to the checkout so her and her long arms could get the three of them in the shot while still social distancing from the cashier. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dunno if I make these two chat so much during sex bc im very chatty in the bedroom myself, or because it's easier for me to get through writing sex scenes by having them tease each other the whole time. 
> 
> ANYWAY sorry for the unintentional hiatus. I really have missed being able to work on this story and chat with you guys in the comments. Farming is just a...very time consuming job at the moment. But I will keep up with this fic as much as I can. because, well, I live in the US and...well, you probably already know just how bad we're doing at handling this pandemic. Just...so fucking bad, dude.
> 
> And in case you're worried! I have stated multiple times already that this a NO ANGST FIC. So just trust that I will steer this story back into Fluffville asap
> 
> Anyhow, love yinz, stay safe, and WEAR A FKIN MASK <3


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Socially distant get togethers and GAY PANIC

“Kara?”

“Hmm?”

“You alright?” 

Lena watched Kara closely as she shuffled about on the roof of the apartment building, moving the adirondack chairs onto the spots she had measured out on the ground, then checking the distance between them with her measuring tape, then shifting them slightly again. 

“Yeah...yeah,” Kara said with a distracted sigh, keeping her back to Lena. “I’m just...anxious I guess.” 

“Because we’re having company over?” Lena asked. “Kara. It’s only four people. Alex and Kelly, and Nia and Brainy. And you have all but guaranteed that this will be the most socially distant get together we’ve ever had.”

“I know, I know,” Kara said as she adjusted the end tables next to the chairs. Again. “I just feel...guilty, you know? Like we’re bad people for even…”

“Kara,” Lena soothed, stepping towards her until she was close enough to grab her hand, stilling Kara in place instantly. “I understand why you’re concerned. But if I’m being honest? I think you need this. You seem to be in a bit of a slump lately.”

“I’m not-” Kara began, but when her eyes met Lena’s she could tell she wouldn’t be able to get away with lying. She deflated slightly. “Okay. Maybe I’m a little...off.” 

Lena didn’t push to ask why. She had a feeling she could guess at least part of the reason. It was the same reason Lena had felt off lately as well. It made her feel pathetic to admit that she had been mourning the loss of their physical relationship since they broke it off. But she was. She really, really was. 

“Right. So,” Lena pressed on. “Seeing your friends, and especially your sister, will be good for you. And they wouldn’t come if they didn’t feel comfortable with it.” 

Kara nodded, turning to Lena, glancing down at their still joined hands briefly. 

“You’re right,” she said resolutely. “As always,” she said with a warm but strained smile, and then pulled Lena in for a quick hug. Lena tried not to melt into it desperately. “Oh! I’ve gotta check on the dips!” Kara said, and bolted towards the door that led back down to the floor of Lena’s, or more accurately,  _ their _ , apartment. Which was still a wild concept to Lena. 

They were roommates now. Honest to goodness, official roommates. Lena had cleared out a room for Kara (R.I.P to her at-home lab. It was a building code violation, anyway), Kara had moved in all her stuff, bed included (R.I.P to the bed sharing), and she had ended her lease with her apartment building. 

It had all felt a bit hasty at first. Lena seemed to somehow still be under the impression that this was still temporary. Like their cohabitation would end as soon as the newfound madness in the world subsided. But it wasn’t subsiding. Not in this country, anyway. And the more they discussed living together permanently, the more normal it seemed, until the concept of Kara living with Lena went from being a pet project for CatCo to a logical shift in both their lives. Lena had the extra space, after all, and neither of them had anyone else as important in their lives they would rather live with.

The idea seemed fun, too. They would be like Rachel and Monica in Friends. You know, if Rachel and Monica had both been bisexuals with a history of having casual sex with each other. Which would have made for a much more watchable show, in Lena’s opinion.

And yes, maybe it was a little abnormal that they had chosen to live together permanently after abruptly ending their physical arrangement. Any maybe, just  _ maybe _ , Lena caught herself yearning for Kara every now and then. Like when she forgot to bring her clothes in with her to the bathroom and strolled past Lena’s field of vision in a loosely wrapped towel after a shower. Or when she hummed to herself as she shuffled around the kitchen first thing in the morning, always preparing Lena’s coffee just the way she liked it before she poured herself a cup. Or when she fell asleep on the couch across from Lena not ten minutes after saying that she wasn’t tired…

But it was fine. Lena was handling her yearning just fine. 

Though, on an unrelated note, she would need to get some batteries next time she went out to the store. She had somehow managed to burn through all the batteries in her vibrators. 

Kara zipped back up the stairs a moment later, pulling Lena back to reality and the more pressing matter at hand: bringing Kara’s spirits back up from this slump she was in. And nothing made her happier than having Alex and her friends over for drinks and games. Even if it had to be on the roof of the apartment building where they had enough fresh air and enough room to socialize safely. And speaking of drinks…

“Kara why don’t you put the sun inhibitor on?” Lena asked as she started pouring the liquor needed for her famous sangria into the large pitcher on the patio table in the middle of all of the spaced out adirondack chairs.

Kara froze, looking at Lena with bulging eyes.

“W-what?” she stammered. 

Lena only then realized what Kara must have been thinking.

“No, I mean-” Lena said with a nervous laugh. “Why don’t you wear it when everyone comes over? You could actually get drunk with me and Alex for once instead of being a sober bystander.”

*

Kara thought about it for a moment. It had been a long time, like a  _ really _ long time, since she had been anything close to tipsy. And seeing as she wasn’t going to use the bracelet for its intended purpose any time soon anyhow…

“Fuck it, why not?” Kara replied. 

“Oh  _ hell _ yes. I’ll go grab the tequila!” 

“Lena, no one is even here yet!” Kara protested.

“Haven’t you ever heard of pre-gaming?” Lena said, giving Kara a little wink and shimmy before she disappeared down the stairs from the roof and down to her apartment.

Kara sighed. Was Lena always this flirtatious? Or was Kara just extra sensitive to it now that she had the worst case of figurative blue balls  _ ever… _

It had been precisely three weeks, two days, and a handful of hours since Kara and Lena had broken off their little....arrangement. And since then things had been great! They really had. Lena and Kara were closer than ever. 

Except they weren’t because Kara wanted them to be close enough that she could feel Lena tremble inside as she…

_ Ugh, stop it, _ Kara scolded herself as she set up a mini charcuterie board on a small table next to each couple of chairs. 

Entertaining was fun with a Luthor budget. Events at Kara’s apartment had always been boxed wine and whatever snacks she had in her pantry. Moving in with Lena had definitely come with its perks.

Hopefully the decadent spread of snacks would distract Kara from all her conflicting thoughts. Besides her obvious horniness for her former lover and still best friend, she was also anxious as hell to see Alex and Kelly and Nia and Brainy in person again, after what felt like an eternity. But it was a good anxious and a bad anxious at the same time. Fate felt particularly malicious in this instance for making it feel wrong to be with the people you love.

Soon after, the door to the roof swung back open with a loud, groaning creak as Lena reappeared with a bottle of tequila, a stack of shot glasses, and Kara’s sun inhibiting bracelet. Once Lena had tequila shots on the brain, she managed to achieve speeds almost as fast as Supergirl in order to get the ball rolling. 

“Come on,” Lena said as she poured generously into two of the shot glasses. “Let’s have some fun.” 

Kara’s idea of having fun with Lena was very different than simply doing a shot of tequila with her. But they didn’t do that anymore! No matter how much Kara wanted to. No matter how many times she’d caught herself staring at Lena while she was reading a book or working on her laptop, desperate to climb on top of her and kiss her until they had both forgotten what they had just been doing. No matter how worked up she got over the way Lena’s leggings clung to her ass when she did her yoga poses in the morning. And no matter how much it felt like torture when she had to pop the bracelet on at night in her room to block out her superhearing, as the sound of what was definitely one of Lena’s vibrators assaulted her ears while she was trying to fall asleep. Even thought she knew damn well she would do a much better job satisfying Lena herself...

You know what? Alcohol sounded like a  _ great _ idea right about now. 

Kara took the bangle from Lena’s outstretched hand, trying not to notice the way their fingers brushed as she did so. She clamped it on her wrist and swiftly took the shot off of the table where Lena had placed it for her, downing it before she even remembered the Earth custom of clinking beverages glasses together in times of celebration. 

“Atta girl,” Lena said with a chuckle, and followed Kara’s lead. 

  
  


By the time Alex and Kelly arrived, Kara seemed a bit more relaxed than she had before. Lena actually had to keep an eye on her phone so she could buzz them into the building when they arrived, since Kara couldn’t simply hear them arriving twenty stories below in her mortal state. 

There was an awkward bumbling between the two pairs of co-quarantiners when Alex and Kelly arrived. The instinct was for everyone to hug each other once they were together. They’d done so every time they had met up. The Danvers were definitely huggers. It had taken Lena some getting used to. And the urge was even stronger now, after literal months of not being together. 

But they couldn’t. So instead they stood apart, Alex and Kelly next to the rooftop door, Lena and Kara apart from them, all of them shifting their weight from one foot to the other, trying to figure out how to proceed. 

“Oh, fuck it, you’re my sister for Rao’s sake,” Kara said, and pulled her sister into a tight hug, a hug so desperate that normally Lena would worry that she might accidentally crack one of Alex’s ribs. But she didn’t have to worry about that now. 

Alex hugged her back, the cheerful expression on her face looking strained as the both of them, the strongest and most bonded pair of women Lena had ever met, had to grapple with just how much they had missed each other in the span of one hug. Kelly gave Lena a look, one that mirrored Lena’s own heartbreak in response to the gravity of this moment. Lena wondered if this had been a bad idea, if her attempt to bring joy back into Kara’s life would only cause unintended wounds.

Lena shook her head, pushing past the dread. They were together now. That was all that mattered. 

“You okay, Alex?” Kelly asked gently.

Alex cleared her throat, pulling away slowly from Kara’s grip and subtly wiping her eyes as she tried to hide her swell of emotion. 

“Yeah. Just surprised I can still breathe,” she replied with a half hearted smile. “You’re getting better and not killing me with your hugs, Kara.”

“Oh! That’s not me! It’s this-” she said, holding up her wrist for Alex to observe. “See?” 

“See what? A bracelet? That’s...cool, I guess?” 

“No, it’s more than that. It suppresses my powers! Lena made it.” 

Alex gave Lena a suspicious look. 

“And why would she do that?” she asked carefully. 

Lena averted her gaze from the two sisters. Kara started to stammer out a few ‘ums’ and ‘uhs’. Alex’s eyes went wide. 

“You know what? I don’t want to know.  _ Please _ do not tell me what you two do with that thing on, I am scarred enough already.”

“Oh, don’t worry, Alex,” Kara said with a chuckle, stepping back from her sister and Kelly now that she had gotten the surge of affection out of her system. “We don’t, ya know, do that anymore.” 

“Do what? I’ve already repressed the whole thing,” Alex said with a shake of her head as she helped herself into the nearest chair. 

“Oh, hush,” Kara snapped. “Can I get you two a drink? I can drink with you guys and it will actually do something other than taste awful for once!” 

Alex glanced at Kelly as she made her way into the chair next to her, who gave her a smile and a reassuring pat on the knee. Something was conveyed in that touch that Lena couldn’t comprehend. 

“It’s a special occasion, babe. It’s fine,” Kelly said. 

“You’re right,” Alex said, relieved, before turning back to Kara and Lena. “I, uh. I’ve been imbibing a little too much lately during quarantine. So I decided to cut back. Like,  _ way _ back. But! Seeing my sister face to face for the first time in forever is cause for a little celebration. So I’ll make an exception. No shots though, Lena, I see you’ve started in on the tequila already.” 

Lena chuckled, remembering plenty of occasions when Alex had tried to go shot for shot with her. It never ended well. Alex might be a lush, but Lena could and  _ would _ drink anyone under the table. 

Soon after, Nia and Brainy arrived, and the whole awkward blunder of how to greet one another started all over again. Nia seemed just as remiss to be without physical affection from her friends as Kara, reaching out on instinct towards Kara when she first stepped through the door and then recoiling regretfully. But they pushed past the moment by similarly reaching out for their counterparts, Nia leaning into Brainy and Kara reaching back instinctively for Lena until she took her hand in her own, her other hand resting reassuringly on the small of Kara’s back as they caught up on everything they’d missed in their time apart. 

“Here!” Nia said, regaining her usual cheer. “I made these for everyone while I was bored as hell.”

She pulled out a stack of homemade face masks from her purse, each of them a slightly different tie dye pattern with “Super Friends” printed in the corner in glittery calligraphy. Kara gasped with glee. 

“I love them! Holy shit!” she exclaimed.

Brainy furrowed his brow. 

“Kara did you just swear? That’s not typical for you.” 

Kara shrugged.

“Picked up the habit from this one I guess,” she explained, pointing at Lena as she examined the masks more closely. “Ugh, these are so freaking cute! No offense to your LCorp ones, Lena. But I need  _ color _ .”

Things felt miraculously...normal after that. They all caught up on what they’d been up to, their harrowing and hilarious tales of slowly losing their minds in isolation. The silly fights that had broken out between the couples during times of peak stress. Lena related far too easily to all of it, as if Lena and Kara were a couple just as much as Nia and Brainy and Kelly and Alex. Which of course wasn’t the case. 

“It is seriously crazy how popular your video blog has gotten, Kara,” Nia commented. “How many followers do you guys have again?” 

“Oh, um, I dunno,” Kara said, chuckling more than usual as she seemed to have to think very hard about Nia’s question. “I try not to pay too much attention to that. It gets overwhelming.” 

“Kara, you write articles that get read by thousands of people and you win  _ awards _ for it,” Kelly said. 

“Well, yeah but...this is different!” Kara exclaimed, polishing off her drink and reaching helplessly towards the sangria pitcher until Lena sighed amusedly at her and got up to refill it for her. “Writing is a very solitary experience. You don’t put content out to the world until you think your work is perfect. During the videos...honestly I’m just trying not to say something stupid in front of thousands of people.”

“Nothing you ever say is stupid,” Lena said unthinkingly. 

Kara smiled affectionately up at Lena in response, continuing to stare at her that way as Lena set her drink down next to her. 

“Do you see what I mean now?” Nia said quietly to Brainy. 

“See what?” Lena asked as she plopped back down in her chair next to Kara. 

Nia shrugged innocently. 

“Nothing,” she replied with a smirk. 

Lena realized that they were going through the sangria faster than she anticipated. She could take a guess as to why, watching Kara chuckle at her own antics as she struggled to get her straw into her mouth. 

“Kara, sweetie?” Lena said softly as she gathered up the nearly drained pitcher to take downstairs so she could add in the fresh squeezed lime juice to make a new batch. 

“Hmm?” Kara replied, her eyes raking over Lena’s body slowly in a way that was not appropriate in front of their guests, or at  _ all _ in their current situation.

“Maybe drink some water,” Lena whispered gently, handing her a water bottle from the cooler. 

Kara blushed a bit. 

“Okay. Thanks, Lena,” Kara replied, her fingers tracing down Lena’s forearm and brushing over her knuckles slowly before plucking the water bottle from Lena’s grip.

Lena swallowed hard, trying not to let her face show any of the thoughts racing through her mind. Because  _ none _ of them were appropriate.

“Lena?” Kelly piped up unexpectedly. 

“Yeah?” Lena said, spinning away from Kara, forgetting for a moment that anyone else was even with them. “What’s up?” 

“Need some help getting the sangria together?” she asked, her eyes suggesting there was more to the question than she was ready to reveal. 

“Uh...sure.” 

“Safely, please!!” Kara chimed in, holding one of Nia’s masks out for Lena. 

“Kara, you hugged Alex but I can’t help Lena make some drinks?” Kelly protested with a laugh. 

Without an immediate comeback to Kelly’s point, Kara just glared at her, though there was nothing all that serious behind it. Kelly rolled her eyes playfully, and popped her mask onto her face, Lena doing the same. 

“Satisfied?” Lena teased.

“Yes. Thank you!” 

Lena shook her head at Kara’s antics, and at the ridiculous circumstances of the restrictions needed for them to see each other in general as she led Kelly downstairs to her apartment. 

“So,” Kelly began carefully once they were downstairs as she cut up some strawberries. “Do you call Kara ‘sweetie’ often?” 

Lena groaned quietly, bracing herself for what was looking to be a surprise therapy session.

Goddamn therapists. 

“There's nothing wrong with using pet names with your best friend,” Lena retorted, slicing harshly through a lime.

“Hey, I’m not judging, Lena. I’m just...curious, I guess.” 

“Yeah…” Lena replied. “There’s a lot of people who are curious about the nature of Kara and my relationship these days.”

“And most of those people don’t even know the half of just how complicated it’s become over the last couple months.” 

Lena sighed. A deep, existential sigh. One she felt like she’d been holding in for  _ weeks _ . 

“No shit,” she said. 

“Wanna talk about it?” Kelly asked gently. Lena gave her a pointed look. “Oh, come on. I’m rusty as hell with face to face consultations. I need the practice.” 

Lena frowned behind her mask. She did feel like she was bursting at the seams with all the things left unsaid. Lena and Kara told each other everything, but this was the one thing she couldn’t come to her about. 

“Fine,” she said, setting her paring knife down. “You wanna know the truth? I’m losing my goddamn mind.” 

“Yeah?” Kelly asked, leaning against the countertop behind her, waiting for Lena to continue. 

“Well? Wouldn’t you be? I mean, imagine if you were living with Alex and you weren’t together. You know, like, together in  _ that _ way. Wouldn’t it drive you crazy?” 

“Of course it would,” Kelly replied sympathetically. “But that’s because I’m in love with Alex and she’s in love with me.” 

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Lena said with an offhanded sigh. “It’s different.”

“Is it?” Kelly offered. 

Lena could almost hear the proverbial record scratch in her head in response to Kelly’s question, all of her thoughts coming to a screeching halt at the suggestion behind it. 

“Are you asking me if I’m in love with Kara?” 

Kelly shrugged.

“I’m just asking you to be honest, Lena. Honest with yourself, at least.” 

Lena leaned her head back until she was staring at her ceiling, slowly inhaling and exhaling before she let herself find the answer to Kelly’s question. 

*

“Can I just address the elephant in the room?” Alex asked suddenly after a lull of quiet had fallen over the group in Kelly and Lena’s absence. “Or, elephant on the roof, I guess.” 

Kara narrowed her eyes at Alex, grateful for the water bottle as it took her a moment to fully focus on her sister. 

“Which is?” she asked, knowing that one way or another she did not like where this conversation was headed. 

“You and Lena still very clearly have the hots for each other,” she said, staring Kara down like a challenge. 

“Still?” Nia asked, confused. “What does she mean ‘still’? What…” Nia gasped suddenly, realization dawning on her face. “What did I miss?” she asked, nearly leaping out of her chair with excitement.

“Can we not do this now?” Kara replied through gritted teeth.

Alex shrugged smugly.

“Call it an intervention for you and your addiction to avoiding your feelings.” 

“I’m not…” Kara began to protest. “Oh, shut up, Alex.” 

“Kara what  _ happened _ ?” Nia pressed, all but crawling out of her skin in her desperation to be in on the gossip. 

“Nia, I don’t think it’s polite to-” Brainy began, seeming very distressed by the sudden change in topic.

“Shh,” Nia hissed, grabbing his hand and holding it in her lap as she leaned further and further forward into the conversation. “Did something happen between you two? Tell me  _ everything.” _

“It’s nothing!” Kara lied instinctively. “Nothing happened!” 

“Pfft,” Alex scoffed, taking a sip of her drink. “That’s bullshit and you know it.” 

“God you’re the worst,” Kara groaned. She felt like her skin was going hot under her sister’s shit grin and Nia’s expectant look, until she couldn’t take the silence anymore. “Ugh! Fine! We...sort of...kind of...hooked up. A few times.”

“What did I say?” Nia said to Brainy, lightly smacking his arm in triumphant excitement. “I told you it would happen!” 

Brainy looked over apologetically at Kara. 

“I tried to tell Nia it was improper to gossip about the personal lives of two of our friends. But she was rather insistent while watching your livestreams that you two were, and I quote, ‘thirsty as hell’ for each other.” 

“Okay. I get it. Everyone gets it,” Kara bemoaned over her water bottle, wishing she had a higher tolerance for alcohol so she could switch back to Lena’s sangria, which was unfairly and dangerously delicious.

“So are you guys dating now?” Nia asked. 

“No,” Kara said firmly.

“Why?” Nia lamented. 

“Becuase it’s...it’s complicated!” 

“It’s really not,” Alex said under her breath.

“Something you wanna say there, nosey?” Kara asked. 

“All I’m saying,” Alex replied, taking her time making a little sandwich of triscuits, smoked gouda, and sopressata. “Is that it’s only complicated because you are  _ making _ it complicated. I mean,  _ really _ , Kara. You two are closer than even you and I are at this point, you tell each other you love each other like...every five seconds. You  _ live _ together. And you are, much to my dismay, barely able to keep your hands off of each other. So please, Kara, explain to me how you guys aren’t a couple in all but title?” 

“Well we…” Kara began, finding it hard to find all the justifications she had told herself as to why she and Lena couldn’t be together. They were just there on the tip of her tongue a moment ago. “It’s not that...you have to understand that…”

Nope. She had nothing. 

“Shit,” Kara conceded. “We’re basically a couple, aren’t we?” 

“Uh huh,” Alex replied smugly as she stuffed the stack she had made into her mouth unceremoniously. “I’ve been trying to tell you, Kara,” she mumbled, a bit of cracker spewing out of her mouth. 

“You’ve lost a lot of your social skills over quarantine,” Kara retorted stubbornly. 

Alex flipped her off in reply, smiling with glee at her own antics. 

“So?” Nia asked expectantly. “What now?” 

“Well…” Kara began, feeling suddenly sobered up enough from the dawning realization her sister forced onto her. “I kinda wanna kick you all out so I can do something about it.” 

“Oh hell no,” Nia replied, settling back into her chair. “I wanna be here to see this.” 

Kara glared at Nia.

“I think we are nearing the point that we are  _ too _ close as a group of friends,” she said. 

“Whatever, you fucked your best friend,” Nia replied, earning her a piece of fontinella to the face that Kara tossed at her. “Hey!” she said with a laugh.

*

“Alright. So maybe. I’m sort of in love with Kara.” 

Kelly nodded. Not as a way of agreeing with her, but as a way to indicate that she was listening as Lena worked through everything she had been struggling with for, well, a long time, if she was being honest. 

“And it was probably really stupid to have her move in with me before coming to terms with this.” 

“It wasn’t stupid, Lena. You wanted to be close to her.” 

“Right...” Lena said with a heavy exhale, feeling her chest get lighter from being able to finally talk about it with someone. “Okay. Well. I guess I should figure out what my next move is.” 

Kelly chuckled mutedly.

“You make it sound like a business transaction.” 

“Yeah. Well. I’m fucked up that way.” 

“Oh, come on, Lena. I’m just teasing you.”

“I know. And I’m being self deprecating as usual as a defense mechanism.”

Kelly’s eyebrow quirked up in silent amusement at Lena.

“And here I thought you refused to dabble with the evil witchcraft of therapy,” she said.

Lena shrugged.

“I read a couple of self help books during quarantine,” she said.

“Good for you!” Kelly replied. “Now about actually going to see a therapist officially…”

“One step at a time, there, Olsen,” Lena quipped, and then shook her head. “Oh my God I’m in love with my best friend.  _ Fuck _ .” 

“You act like that’s a bad thing.”

“It’s not,” Lena said, resting her hands against the countertop. “It’s just...inconvenient.” 

“Why do you say that?” 

“Becuase I  _ love _ her Kelly,” Lena said in a whine, letting her hands that gripped the table hold all her weight as she slumped over, defeated by the swell of emotions in her. “I love her. And I’m in love with her. And there are just...so many ways I could screw this up. I mean...what if she doesn’t feel the same way? What if-” 

“Lena,” Kelly said. “If I may speak bluntly?” 

“Please do,” Lena said, glancing up only briefly at Kelly so she wouldn’t reveal the sudden mistiness in her eyes. 

“You’ve gotta be out of your fucking mind if you think that Kara isn’t crazy about you.” 

Lena laughed. Really laughed. At Kelly, at herself, at how freaking dumb she realized she and Kara had been up until now for not figuring this out sooner, and at the loss of the plausible deniability she had shattered through by finally saying out loud how she truly felt.

“So? What do you wanna do about it?” Kelly asked. 

Lena thought a moment, feeling dizzy from the alcohol and the rush of serotonin and anxiety that all mixed together to form a very interesting cocktail gripping her mind.

“I want Kara to get her cute ass down here so I can give her a good a proper fuck,” she said candidly.

Kelly blinked, surprised by Lena’s admission. 

“Sorry. I have uh...a lot of built up sexual frustration,” Lena said with a chuckle.

“Clearly,” Kelly replied with a chuckle as she tossed all the cut up fruit into the pitcher. “You don’t have to do anything right this second, you know.”

“No, I probably should. I’ll lose my nerve again if I don’t.”

“Right, but also...I’d rather not catch the live version of the show Alex caught a few weeks ago, either.”

“Hey, you made me deal with my feelings,” Lena replied, tossing a spent lime wedge at Kelly playfully. “Now you will suffer the consequences of it.” 

*

Lena felt like she was going to throw up the whole walk back up the stairs and back onto the roof. What was she going to say? What was she going to  _ do _ ? How was she supposed to handle this in front of their friends, seeing as most of the ideas she had of how to tell Kara involved grabbing her by the hips and hoisting her up onto the nearest sturdy surface...

Shit shit shit shit  _ shit _ .

*

Kara’s stomach was doing tequila drenched somersaults when the door to the roof finally opened again. It didn’t help that she could feel just about every pair of eyes on the roof on her, Lena’s included. She noticed that the pitcher of sangria in Lena’s hand seemed to tremble in her grip. Was something the matter? Should she ask her about it? 

No. No. Focus, Kara. She knew she had to tell her before she choked again and made up some excuse to put it off. This isn’t how she pictured this conversation going. She definitely didn’t expect to have an  _ audience _ . But nothing about the past few months was normal or according to plan. So...here went nothing. 

Kara took a few hasty steps towards Lena, thankful for the bracelet on her wrist or her nerves might have made her accidentally race into Lena and knock into her, spilling her pitcher all over the roof. Lena’s eyes widened with something Kara could only describe as  _ panic  _ once she was a couple of steps away from her, and she didn’t miss how Kelly subtly took the pitcher out of Lena’s grip before she dropped it. 

“I have to tell you something,” both women said in almost complete unison. 

Kara was startled by Lena’s words mirroring her own. It threw her off, made the words, the confession she held behind her lips, fall right out via her slackened jaw. But she was going to get through it, she was going to find new words to say that would have to suffice. Not because she had to, but becuase she really  _ really _ wanted to. She wanted Lena to know that she loved her so badly that she thought it might just burst out of her like confetti; a big glittery “I Love You” caligraphized like Nia’s masks appearing magically above her head and raining down on the both of them. 

“Kara, I-” Lena began, pulling Kara out of her ridiculous daydream. 

And then Kara felt her phone buzz in her pocket. Because why the fuck wouldn’t her phone be ringing at this exact moment? Kara wanted to ignore it, but the vibration in her pocket was just annoying enough to steal away her attention. With a groan, she indicated with a hand gesture for Lena to wait a moment, and checked her phone. 

“Ugh, son of a bitch,” Kara moaned, and picked up the phone. 

“ _ Kara,” _ Cat said, tone already agitated. “ _ I figured that cutting your live streams back to just once a week would be forgiving enough to allow you to at least be prompt. And yet. Here we are.” _

“Cat, this is really not a good time. I... _ crap _ .” She looked, panicked, at Lena. “The livestream!” she mouthed.

Kara looked at Lena helplessly. Lena’s mouth went agape.

“We completely forgot,” Lena said in a whisper. 

“Uh! Sorry, Miss Grant!” Kara said into the phone. “We had um, technical difficulties! I’m on it,” she said, and hung up the phone with a shaky hand. “What are we gonna do?” 

“I mean, I guess we could just film our rooftop get together, right? That should work?” Lena rationalized. 

  
“Oh god,” Alex said with a growing laugh. “This is gonna be  _ great _ .” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In my head I planned for the gap between them not fucking anymore and them JUST ADMITTING THEIR DAMN FEELINGS was gonna be longer but. Then I sat down to write this chap and this came out so. Let's just say this was my plan all along, deal? 
> 
> Oh, and by the way, i'm aware that there is now a rock and a hard place with this fic regarding continuing to stay on topic of covid and how everything sucks, while there is now this whole new shit storm going on in the US (where I live) in regards to police brutality, protests, etc. And while I don't know if i'll put any of that in this story yet, bc the point of this fic was always meant to be fun fluffy escapism, regardless of what path i take writing this, I just want to make a point to say: Black Lives MORE than Matter, defund the police, fuck trump, and fuck cops. And no, I do not accept constructive criticism in regards to any of the aforementioned statements. Cool? Cool.
> 
> Love yinz,  
> Tess


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> HANDS

“Hi, everyone! Hope you had a good week!” Kara said, trying to hide the panic in her voice as she greeted her viewers. This was _not_ a good time to do a video. Her head was buzzing and she had guests and she was about to tell Lena she _loves_ _her_. “So...not gonna lie, I kind of lost track of what day it was and sort of double booked the livestream with a socially distant get together with my sister and a couple of our friends. So...say hi everyone!” 

Kara held the laptop above her head to reveal the group behind her, who all gave their waves and varied greetings. Nia, who was probably one of the biggest and most vocal supporters of the livestream since day one, all but leapt out of her chair to be acknowledged on the screen. 

“Okay, so, uh,” Kara struggled, nearly dropping the laptop as she lowered it back to put herself into view. “I don’t...know where to put this thing so that everyone is in the shot. Lena?” 

“Um, I mean we have that extra camera we can just mount over there and not worry about the laptop?” Lena suggested.

“Oh no. The laptop is essential. Something tells me the comments are gonna be lit today,” Alex muttered over her drink.

Kara glanced at the screen. The first comment she could focus on was  _ “ALEX IS BACK AND LOOKING SEXY AS HELL.” _

“Oh for-” Kara muttered. “You guys are shameless. And I do not want to read these comments if it’s just gonna be everyone thirsting over my sister. Again.” 

“May I offer my assistance in the comment moderating department?” Brainy offered, already busying himself setting up the secondary camera. “I’d rather be a casual observer than an active participant, anyway. I find these videos to be a fascinating study of virtual sociology.” 

Kara shrugged, and handed Brainy the laptop. He started reading the comments instantly, likely able to read every one that came in no matter how fast they streamed through. 

“Oh, Kara, a KittenLover5639 would like me to tell you that you are, quote, ‘a hot mess today’.” 

“Ugh, shut up, I  _ know _ ,” Kara groaned, walking over to Lena to help her double check the camera. As if she had any better idea of how to operate the thing than Lena herself, a literal tech genius. Lena looked up at Kara from the other side of the camera mount with an oddly intense expression, one that made Kara unconsciously hold her breath. “You okay?” she mouthed, knowing from experience that the microphone could be sensitive. 

Lena gave Kara a soft smile.

“I’m fine,” she mouthed back, her eyes shining with something hidden but undeniably monumentous. 

Seriously. Now was not a good time to be making one of these videos…

Kara and Lena took their seats in the half circle made by their friends once again, Kara trying not to notice how often she and Lena stole glances at one another. Lena had to sense that something was going on with Kara. She knew her too well not to pick up on the shift in her mood. But Kara pushed past it for the sake of the livestream.

“So,” Kara piped up. “Wait, can everyone hear me with the camera way over there?” 

“Uh…” Brainy said. “Yep. Looks like they can.” 

“Cool. Okay. Well, you guys have all met Alex and Kelly already. But today we also have Nia Nal with us, one of the best reporters in National City and an even better friend.” 

“Kara,  _ stop _ ,” Nia responded shyly, giving another wave to the camera. 

“And her boyfriend Querl Dox, a, well, a computer analyst. Let’s say that.” 

Brainy shot his arm up in the air like a kid during roll call at the beginning of class, eyes not leaving the laptop screen. 

“Nia!” he piped up. “Kim Underscore The Underscore Karlena Underscore Shipper would like you to know that you are a queen and a goddess.” 

“Oh my God, I’m coming over for your videos all the time now,” Nia said, smiling brightly in response to the praise. 

“Right?” Alex said. “I said the same thing! Such an ego boost.” 

“Oh, here’s a good one,” Brainy continued. “Username-”

“Dox?” Lena interrupted. “Are you going to read out every single username before reading the comment?”

Brainy blinked. 

“I was planning on it. But now that you mention it, I suppose that is not a part of the established model of your videos, is it? I shall adjust accordingly, then. Anyhow, this user would like Kelly specifically to know that her outfit is ‘fire’, and that I am the MVP for handling the computer so Kara and Lena are free to keep trying to hold each other’s hands.” 

Kara blinked, startled by the specificity of the comment. Sure enough, she looked down and noticed that her hand was dangling off the side of her chair, fingers just barely touching Lena’s, who’s hand was outstretched similarly to hers. At the same moment, she and Lena looked up from the position of their hands and into each other’s eyes, and blushed, looking away from one another with a shy giggle. Kara felt her cheeks go hot as she reached for her drink. It probably wasn’t the best idea to be tipsy during the video. Kara knew that she could take the bracelet off and go back to normal at any time. But she also was sure that if she sobered up she might just become overwhelmed by the fact that she was sitting next to the smartest, sexiest, most mind numbingly perfect woman on this planet. And that she really wanted to hold her hand…

“You know what?” Lena said. “The benefit of having other people here for this video is that we don’t have to do all the talking. So. Dox? Why don’t you manage a little viewer Q&A session for our guests so Kara and I can finish our cocktails in peace?” 

Admittedly, Kara thought Lena was being literal when she made this suggestion. So she made quick work of sipping at her drink, and then grabbed a handful of cheese and crackers to get something in her stomach before she got too drunk. But this was, as she soon found out, not Lena’s full intention when she had made the suggestion. 

“Kara,” Lena whispered, holding her glass up to her lips and keeping her eyes trained towards the conversation at hand, which was currently Nia explaining some of her journalism work on the state of the economy in as light and non depressing a manner as possible. 

“Hmm?” Kara responded through a mouthful of gouda. 

“There was something I was going to say to you before we got interrupted by your boss. Again.” 

That got Kara’s attention enough for her to painfully swallow past the mound of half chewed cheese in her mouth. 

“Are you sure you want to talk about this right now?” she asked, glancing over self consciously at the camera staring at them. 

“It’s not ideal, I know,” Lena said, staring down at the ground between them as Kelly could be heard speaking now in the background. “But if I don’t say it now I’m afraid I’ll lose my nerve.”

Lena’s words, the low tone in which she said them, and the way her eyes slowly raked up Kara’s form until they locked onto hers as she bit her lower lip, all but knocked the wind out of her. She knew exactly what Lena meant, about losing her nerve, about needing to say something so big it felt like it was bursting out of her. But if Lena was saying what Kara was currently feeling herself, did that mean…

“Lena?” Kara asked softly. 

Lena’s throat clenched for a moment. 

“Yes?” she replied. 

“I miss you.” 

Lena chuckled. 

“Kara, what are you talking about? We literally live together.” 

“No. I mean I  _ miss _ you. I miss  _ us _ . You’re my best friend, Lena. But I...I want-” 

Kara’s words were stopped short by the overwhelming sensation of Lena reaching out to trace the length of Kara’s forearm before taking her hand in her own. 

“I’ve been losing my mind trying to keep my hands off of you these past few weeks,” Lena murmured, her chest rising and falling like she was struggling to breathe. 

Kara felt a rush of heat blooming on her cheeks. She finally forced herself to look Lena in the eyes, and felt like she got trapped there, overwhelmed by just how beautiful she was. 

Alex’s loud throat clearing to their right pulled Kara back to reality. She looked over and saw Alex giving her a very pointed and amused look, arching an eyebrow at them playfully as she looked down at their conjoined hands. Then heard Lena chuckle helplessly, squeezing Kara’s hand for a brief moment before pulling away altogether. 

“Alex, it is being requested that you not interrupt Kara and Lena while they are, quote, ‘eye fucking’,” Brainy stated next to them as casually as if he were reading the weather report. 

Nia nearly spit out her drink trying to contain her laugh. Kara leaned back in her chair with a heavy sight, regretfully reminded of the fact that they had a very attentive audience watching their every move. Lena seemed to mirror this movement, settling back in her own chair and placing her hands firmly in her lap, but her eyes continued to linger on Kara. Between the livestream and their friends teasing them about how obvious they were being, Kara was definitely feeling crowded.

“Another viewer is saying that-” Brainy began.

“How about we play a game?” Lena interrupted before he could say whatever surely suggestive things were being said in the comments. “Any game. Someone pick a game.” 

“Drinking game?” Alex suggested. “Waterfall!”

“God, no. I’d like to remember this evening, thank you very much,” Nia replied, all too familiar with Alex’s favorite and most potent drinking game.

“Never Have I Ever?” Alex suggested, like the agent of chaos that she was. 

“God. I have not played that game since college,” Kelly replied with a laugh. 

“Perfect. Kara? Lena? Yes?” 

Lena groaned quietly. 

“The viewers seem to think it’s a good idea,” Brainy chimed in. 

“Oh! Let the viewers ask! Let the viewers ask!” Nia said, jumping out of her seat with excitement. 

“I am not familiar with the premise of this game, could someone please elaborate?” Brainy asked. 

“People say things that they’ve never done before, and if you have done it, you take a drink,” Kelly explained. 

“Oh. That’s...actually quite self explanatory,” he replied. 

“You guys are seriously okay with potentially airing out your dirty laundry in front of a live audience?” Lena asked, horrified. 

“I am a woman of no secrets, Lena,” Alex replied. 

“Lies! You lie!” Kara accused, pointing her finger at Alex animatedly. 

“So?” Kelly asked. “Are we playing or not?” 

Kara gave Lena a questioning look. She shrugged, getting up and filling both their drinks in resigned acceptance for whatever shit show was likely in store. Kara noticed that Lena had switched to water at some point, but she wasn’t about to rat her out to Alex, who took drinking games  _ very _ seriously. 

“Alright. We’ll play,” Lena said as she came back to her seat. “Just...for the love of God, Dox, choose the questions they ask  _ carefully _ .”

Lena placed Kara’s drink in her hand, her fingers brushing against Kara’s with a slow determination that made Kara’s mind freeze for a solid few seconds. 

_ I’ve been losing my mind trying to keep my hands off of you. _ Those words Lena had uttered rolled around and around in Kara’s mind until she could think of nothing else. 

“Okay! Wow, there are a lot to choose from,” Brainy said, eyes widening as she stared at the computer screen. 

Kara wished she could have Brainy over for all of their live streams, so he could serve as a buffer between them and the chaos of the comments section of their videos. 

“Ah, here’s a good one,” Brainy continued. “Never Have I Ever been in love with my best friend.” 

_ Crap _ , Kara thought bitterly. She should have known they’d go in this direction right off the bat. 

“I mean, hasn’t everyone been in love with their best friend at some point?” she said. Once the words left her mouth she realized that that might have been quite possibly the worst response she could have given.

Instead of explaining herself, she took her drink, along with Nia, Kelly, and Lena.

“Alex?” Lena asked. “Never?” 

Alex shrugged. 

“I don’t think it counts if you didn’t realize you were being gay at the time.” 

“Yes it does!” Kara protested. “What about-”

“Don’t you dare!” Alex snapped, tossing a cracker in Kara’s direction, who batted it away with a laugh.

“So who is it, then?” Nia asked.

“Hmm?” Kara replied. 

“The best friend you’re in love with.” 

Kara narrowed her eyes at Nia, not expecting her to be the one stirring up more gossip in an already charged game. 

“Next question!” Lena demanded, clearing her throat past the awkward moment that had fallen upon them. 

“Okay,” Brainy replied. “Never Have I Ever hooked up with a friend.” 

“Oh my God, you guys,  _ really _ ?” Lena groaned. “This was a terrible idea,” she muttered into her glass as she took a reluctant sip of her water. 

“Kelly!” Alex exclaimed as she watched her take a gulp of her drink. “Who?” 

“Does it matter?” Kelly asked with a laugh.

“Well, no, obviously, but I’m just curious.” 

“I’ll tell you later,” Kelly said with a reassuring pat on Alex’s knee. 

“Can we please get a question that isn’t about...that?” Kara bemoaned. 

“Sure. Ah,” Brainy said, scanning the screen. “Never Have I Ever...wait, hang on, just a lot of people are asking who Lena and Kara hooked up with. Oh! Never Have I Ever gone skiing.”

“There! That’s more like it! I have never done that!” Kara said excitedly. 

*

Lena was grateful when Kara decided to wrap the livestream up early once the questions became almost entirely inappropriate. She also seemed to be getting drowsy from all the excitement of entertaining. She was like a puppy that way. When Kara finally gave her usual sendoff to the viewers, Lena let out the breath she felt like she’d been holding in, finally able to relax again and not feel like her every move was being scrutinized and searched for subtext. 

Well, almost. She couldn’t help but notice that Kelly was still watching her closely since their talk in Lena’s kitchen. And she knew it was from a place of caring and concern on Kelly’s part, but it still made her anxious.

Or perhaps her anxiety stemmed from the words left unsaid to the sleepy blonde next to her. As the group chatted amicably amongst themselves, with so much to catch up on after months apart, Lena sat quietly, lost in her own thoughts. All she really wanted to do was send their guests home so she could be alone with Kara once again. But she knew how important this get together was for Kara, so she convinced herself to be patient a while longer. She’d kept her confession of love for Kara to herself for over three years, an hour or so more wouldn’t kill her, right? 

Kara laughed softly in response to a joke Nia made, likely only half hearing it as her eyelids drooped once again, the soft glow of the string lights hung above the chairs illuminating the blush on Kara’s cheeks from the effects of the sangria. Lena had the sudden urge to pull Kara into her lap and stroke her hair until she fell asleep. And she could, if she really wanted to. It’s not like anyone here didn’t already know how crazy Lena was for Kara by now. And even if they didn’t, it was more than typical for the two of them to end up cuddling against one another during such get togethers, anyhow. At some point, Kara had turned Lena into an affectionate person. But only for her. 

Lena refrained from doing so, however, and instead settled on reaching over to lay a hand on Kara’s wrist, her fingers gently tracing gently the perimeter of the sun inhibitor on it. Kara stirred slightly in response to Lena’s touch, a small smile blooming across her lips. Her eyes blinked open slowly, and she met Lena’s gaze for a long moment. Then her eyes flitted down to where Lena’s fingertips touched her skin. 

“I think it’s time I sobered up, don’t you?” Kara asked. 

Lena smiled, thinking she understood what Kara meant, and slowly pulled the bangle off of her wrist. Kara took a deep inhale, like she was breathing in the power she had been lacking through her lungs. The sun was all but set behind the city skyline behind them, but it was just enough to take the flush from her cheeks and put the energetic light back into her eyes. 

Kara let out the breath she had taken in with a satisfied hum. 

“Did you have fun tonight?” Lena asked softly, setting the bracelet down and setting her hand into Kara’s opened palm until their fingers instinctively became intertwined. 

“Yes. Thank you for convincing me to do this. It made me really happy.” 

“That was the goal.” 

“You know what else makes me happy?” 

“What?” 

“You.” 

Lena knew Kara was setting up to say that exact thing to her, but she still found herself grinning like an idiot in response regardless. She tilted her head down for a moment to conceal the small chuckle that bubbled out of her lips. 

“Dork,” she murmured, squeezing Kara’s hand a bit tighter. 

Kara lifted their joined hands to her face, leaving a light kiss on Lena’s knuckles. It wasn’t something completely out of character for Kara and all of her affectionate habits, but after spending weeks keeping such touches to a minimum as they tried to go back to being friends, the small gesture was completely overwhelming to Lena. Kara seemed to pick up on the effect it had on her. She met Lena’s gaze and kissed her hand again, letting her lips linger on her skin longer this time. Lena let out a shuddering exhale.

“Well,” Alex said suddenly, clearing her throat and giving Lena and Kara a knowing look. “Looks like it’s about time we headed out, don’t you think?” 

“ _ Yes _ ,” Kara replied eagerly. “I mean...only if you want to. I don’t want to rush you guys out.” 

“No, no. It’s getting late anyhow. Nia?” 

“Yep. Definitely getting late. Brainy?” 

“Oh. We’re leaving?” 

“Yes, love. Kara and Lena have...other things to do, I’m sure,” she said, holding her hand out for Brainy to take and helping him out of his chair.

“Thanks for having us over, guys. This was great,” Kelly said as she got up. “Enjoy the rest of your night.”

Lena didn’t miss the wink Kelly gave her. 

After a few more brief goodbyes and loaded comments in Lena and Kara’s direction, their guests went home and Lena and Kara were once again alone on the roof. I was dark now, save for the twinkle lights strung above them. It was a balmy and calm evening, and Lena couldn’t help but think that she could stay out here all night, given the company. The only thing that took away from the pleasant contentment Lena felt was the storm of butterflies in her stomach. 

“I guess we should clean up?” Kara asked, looking around at the residue of the evening’s festivities. 

It would be so easy for Lena to agree. They could simply spend the rest of the night tidying up and then retreat to their respective bedrooms for the evening without another word besides a simple ‘goodnight’ and prolong the inevitable that much longer. But, quite frankly, that sounded like a fucking terrible idea. 

“You really think I care about cleaning up right now?” Lena asked. 

Kara was standing a few away feet from Lena, nearer to the door where she had lingered to say a few more goodbyes to Alex before she left. Which felt entirely too far away. 

“No.” Kara asked with a shy smile. “And I don’t, either.”

Lena took a slow, tentative step towards Kara, and Kara reacted in kind, until they were standing face to face. 

“Kara…” Lena said, reaching out to touch her but unsure of where to start. She settled on tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear, and took a steadying breath. “I’m in love with you,” she said. “I have been in love with you...pretty much since the moment we met. I was just too stubborn and scared to want to admit it to even myself. And I’m really hoping that you feel the same way because I just...I  _ really _ don’t want to go back to being just your friend.”

Kara's eyes widened, taking a moment to process everything Lena had said. 

“Cool,” she finally replied. 

Lena blinked.

“That’s it? I tell you I’m in love with you and you just say  _ ‘cool’ _ ?” 

“I’m sorry! I froze!” Kara said with a helpless chuckle.

“For fuck’s  _ sake _ , Kara-” Lena began to protest, but was cut off when Kara grabbed her by the waist and pulled her in close and kissed her, both of them collapsing against each other desperately in response to it.

Kara pulled away first, the return of her powers leaving her not nearly as breathless as Lena. 

“I love you too, by the way,” she said.

“Well I should fucking hope so,” Lena countered, sending Kara into a fit of giggles that only stopped when Lena kissed her again and again until they were both breathless. 

And then Lena felt herself being lifted off the ground as Kara picked her up and started to carry her towards the roof access door. 

“Are you gonna carry me the whole way down to the apartment?” Lena asked teasingly, even though that sounded like a  _ fantastic _ idea. 

“Yes. But luckily,” Kara said, and Lena yelped at the rush of wind she felt as Kara took off flying, shooting down the side of the building, through the open window of their apartment, and into Lena’s bedroom. “I know a shortcut.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wish I wasn't working myself to death so I could put more time into my updates tbh.
> 
> Smut next chapter, tho!
> 
> Love yinz,  
> Tess


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You already know what it is...

“Fuck,” Lena groaned appreciatevely as Kara dropped Lena onto the bed, pressing their bodies together, kissing her hotly, the two of them practically out of breath just from the thrill of being able to touch each other again after weeks of holding back. 

“This isn’t your favorite shirt or anything is it?” Kara asked. 

“Absolutely not.” 

Kara hummed approvingly and ripped the shirt off, eliciting a gleeful yelp from Lena. 

Lena had been desperate for this moment since the exact second after they had called off the “benefits” part of their friendship. It was almost embarrassing how much she needed Kara, how much she needed to be touched by her. Every place Kara’s fingertips brushed felt like it was on fire, every kiss hit her harder than a shot of tequila. 

“God, I missed you,” Kara murmured, kissing Lena every part of Lena she could get to, just becuase she could. Her jaw, her collarbone, her forearms, her stomach. “I missed your lips, the smell of your perfume, your soft skin…” 

“I don’t know if I missed how much you talk during sex,” Lena replied, eliciting a helpless laugh from Kara.

“Okay, okay, I’ll shut up,” Kara said.

“Oh, no, please keep telling me everything that you missed about me,” Lena replied smugly, eyes locked on Kara’s until she trailed her mouth back up Lena’s chest, to her throat, and up until they were kissing again. 

“I missed the sound of your heartbeat,” Kara breathed into Lena’s ear when she pulled away. “The way you breathe when I’m touching you, that little whimper you make when I bite your neck.” 

Kara nipped at Lena’s throat to prove her point. Okay, maybe Lena did whimper a little bit when she did that…

“I’ve had to touch myself almost every night just to keep myself from barging into your room,” Lena admitted. 

Kara bit her lower lip, staring up intently at Lena as she undid the button of Lena’s pants and pulled them down. 

“Yeah I know. I could hear you,” she replied, tapping her ear with her index finger, reminding Lena of her superhuman hearing. 

Lena groaned, suddenly self conscious at this realization, and rolled her face into the pillow to hide her momentary embarrassment. 

“How could you stand it?” she asked, voice muted in the pillowcase. 

“What do you think I was doing while I was listening?” Kara purred, pulling at Lena’s lingerie with her teeth. 

Lena bucked against Kara’s mouth, unable to help herself. Lena thought back on all the times she had had to, quite frustratedly, relieve herself in the solitary confines of her bed, which was much too big without Kara in it. When she imagined Kara trying not to hear Lena just a few feet away, touching herself just to get some sense of relief even though it paled into comparison to the real thing, and being unable to keep from touching herself in response…

The thought was overwhelming, to say the least.

“Then why don’t you show me how much you wanted me all those nights alone in the dark?” 

Kara groaned in response to Lena’s goading, the vibration of it tickling Lena’s inner thigh as Kara rested her lips there, gentle but possessive, kissing her way towards Lena’s aching clit. It wasn’t fair. When they first started their desperate affair, they were just learning the rhythm of each other’s bodies. Now the muscle memory of how to love one another was burned into them like second nature. When Kara was finally done teasing her, Kara pressed her tongue into Lena like she had been dreaming of making symphonies of Lena’s moans since the moments they parted. 

God, it wasn’t fucking  _ fair _ how no one had been able to touch her quite like Kara did…

“Say it again,” Kara murmured between strokes of her tongue against Lena’s center. 

She didn’t have to specify. Lena knew exactly what she wanted her to say. 

“I love you,” Lena breathed, digging her fingers into the sheets in a desperate attempt to ground herself. 

Lena watched Kara carefully as her eyes fluttered shut, her mouth enveloping her clit in a moment of blissful indulgence, an effortless ownership, like Kara was saying “You’re mine. You’ve always been mine”. 

“ _ Again _ ,” Kara begged, breath ragged, like just the sound of it brought her as close to the edge as Lena was under Kara’s power.

Lena held back a giggle, overwhelmed by the sheer bliss of this moment. For the first time in her life, despite the worst circumstances in the world, during the middle of a pandemic...At this moment, she had everything she had ever wanted. 

“I love you,” Lena managed to say, before she completely fell apart. 

*

Lena watched Kara’s back rise and fall, rise and fall, as her breathing evened out, her face pressed into the pillow next to Lena’s, her lips turned upwards, completely content for the first time in a long time. And Lena wanted so badly to be able to leave it at that, to drift off to sleep in complete contentment with Kara lying next to her again, finally. She  _ really _ did. But at the same time…

“So are we done, then?” 

Kara lifted her head, slightly giving her the most confused and frustrated look Lena had ever seen her give.

“I mean, are we, you know,” Lena said, laughing at her own inability to articulate her thoughts. This was the woman who gave public speeches at least once a month, after all, and suddenly she didn’t know how to form a coherent sentence? “Are we done messing this up? Are we done holding back?” 

Kara shifted in bed, turning towards Lena slightly and licking her lips. 

“Were the fifteen or so ‘I Love You’s’ each throughout the course of the night not enough to convince you?” 

Lena didn’t immediately reply, she only smiled. Kara rolled her lips together, eyes searching Lena’s face lovingly. 

“I guess I’m just used to us finding ways to screw this up right before it really starts to work,” Lena admitted.

Kara chuckled softly.

“Look at me,” Kara said, reaching out to wrap her hands around the small of Lena’s unclothed back and pull her in close until she raised her gaze to meet Lena’s. “I am all in. No matter what. As if there were anywhere else I would rather be.” 

Lena felt her cheeks redden just from the overwhelming validation of love that she felt. 

“Okay,” she breathed. “Becuase it would be really embarrassing for me if you didn’t feel just as head over heels, completely  _ fucked _ , helplessly in love as I do right now.”

  
“Oh, you should still be embarrassed.” Kara said with a smirk. “A Luthor in love? That is  _ completely _ embarrassing.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YES THIS IS THE SHORTEST CHAPTER KNOWN TO MAN AFTER A 4 MONTH HAITUS just gimme 5 minutes to post a bonus christmas chapter K LOVE YINZ


	14. A Very Covid Christmas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fast forward a few months...

“Lena?” Kara asked, or more like grunted, from the direction of the balcony. “Do we have a sawzall?” 

Lena scrunched up her nose, putting her book down and padding her way out of the bedroom towards the balcony. 

“Why would you need a- oh dear god!” 

Lena balked at what turned out to be an at least ten foot tall pine tree standing upright on her balcony. 

“Surprise!” Kara’s disembodied voice said cheerfully, hidden somewhere behind the tree, holding it up so it wouldn’t make a long drop down to the sidewalk. 

“I am certainly surprised,” Lena said, double checking the calendar to make sure that it was, in fact, still November. “Where on earth did you get that? None of the tree lots are open until at least next week.” 

“Oh I didn’t go to a tree lot,” Kara said, making her way around the back of the tree so she could give Lena a beaming smile. “I cut this one down myself.” 

“From where? There isn’t exactly a wealth of pine trees in National City.” 

“No but there were a  _ bunch _ up at this Christmas tree farm I found in Washington state. They weren’t open yet but I left some money at their door. Hope I left enough.” 

“You flew that all the way from Washington?” 

“Uh huh.” 

“I’m surprised it has any needles left.”

“What? No! Look at her! She’s a beaut!” 

Lena couldn’t help but chuckle helplessly at her girlfriend. Kara absolutely loved Christmas. She had told Lena a long time ago that she didn’t participate in any “earth” religions, but that it didn’t stop her from going all out for the holidays. The lights, the presents, the cookies, Kara loved all of it. Lena had never met someone who loved this time of year as much as Kara did. And this year, now more than any other, she figured that Kara sort of needed the pick me up that an extra extravagant Christmas could give her. So Lena wasn’t going to argue about the tree standing unexpectedly on her balcony the day after Thanksgiving . Even though it was  _ unreasonably _ large. 

“So if you cut it down already, why do you still need a sawzall?” Lena asked. 

“Oh! Because I lasered it. And it can’t get any water with a cauterized base, now can it?” 

“Ah. Of course. Well?” Lena said with a shrug. “I don’t have much in the apartment as far as power tools are concerned, but I can check the basement? Don’t know if I have a treestand, though.” 

“You don’t have a treestand? What did you put your trees in every other year?” 

“I...usually don’t have a tree.”

Kara gasped dramatically, and likely would have raised a hand to her chest for extra emphasis if she weren’t holding onto the tree. 

“No  _ tree _ on  _ Christmas _ ?  _ Ever _ ?” 

“What? They get needles all over the apartment. And they could have spiders or squirrels in them. You...you checked for spiders and squirrels, right?” she asked, looking at the tree dubiously. 

“Uh…” Kara said and gave it a good shake. “Yep. We’re good.”

Lena wasn’t all that convinced, but she kept her doubts to herself. 

“Well, here,” Kara said, flipping the tree onto its side and carrying it in through the balcony door like she was carrying a purse, and setting it onto the carpet that Lena had  _ just _ cleaned. “I’ll go get what we need. Be right back.” 

Kara gave Lena a quick peck on the cheek before taking off again. Lena frowned down at the massive tree laying in their living room. 

“You better not have any spiders in there,” she said to it, as if it could hear her. If she woke up with a spider on her face because of this she would scream. So. Loud.

Kara whooshed back into the apartment a few moments later, arms loaded with bags full of string lights, a tree stand, and a saw. 

“You’re gonna cut that in here?” Lena asked. “What about all the sawdust?”

“Uh…” Kara said, clearly not having thought about that until now. “Well I can…”

Lena sighed amusedly. 

“I’ll get the vacuum,” she said, leaving Kara to her work. 

Love means not getting mad at your girlfriend when she makes a huge mess in the living room in the pursuit of the perfect Christmas tree. This was Kara Danvers, after all. And if Lena had learned anything in the few months that they had been dating, a bit of controlled chaos was just a part of the package. And Lena loved every second of it.

*

_ “No! No, no no, no, no! You can’t see Dumbo where you put him!”  _

“Maybe I don’t wanna see Dumbo! That movie makes me cry, anyway.” 

_ “Then why do you still have that ornament?”  _

“Because it’s a part of the set!”

Lena held one of the more generic, glass ball ornaments in her left hand and a glass of wine in her right. But she didn’t dare put the ornament on the tree until the “Disney Ornament Debacle” had been sorted out between Kara and Alex.

Apparently Alex and Kara had created a sort of “hybrid holiday” over the years that they had been sisters. The Danvers’ themselves were Jewish, but with Kara being without her own holiday to celebrate in the month of December, and with her love of any and all holidays that involve presents, decorations, lights, and  _ food _ , they’d started involving some more Christmas-like traditions into the mix. A part of that set of unique traditions they’d cultivated over time involved the two of them getting together to decorate Kara’s Christmas tree. When they lived at the Danver’s house, apparently Kara had put a tree up in her room becuase she was obsessed with the human tradition of decorating a tree with sparkly lights and fun trinkets. Despite acting disinterested by the whole thing, Alex had had a lot of opinions about how Kara should decorate it, and even bought a few decorations to help. It had evolved from there. Now, Alex made a point to come over every year to watch Kara decorate her tree and offer commentary, but to Lena’s knowledge, she never actually got up to help her. But without the option to go to Lena and Kara’s apartment this year, the sisters had settled on a zoom call that Lena was surprised to see get so heated. They took tree decorating  _ very _ seriously.

_ “Put him in the middle there,” _ Alex said.  _ “Next to the elf with a mask on.” _

“Isn’t that cute?” Kara exclaimed. “I found it online.” 

_ “Love it.” _

“Okay well if Dumbo is gonna be front and center, can I put Krampus somewhere in the back?”

_ “Don’t you dare,”  _ Alex said defensively.

“Alex,” Kara said, reaching into the box of ornaments she had accumulated over the years and pulling out a gray plush doll with red eyes, horns, and a long red tongue. “This thing is terrifying.” 

_ “You have to put it up! I gave that to you specifically to put on your tree! Besides, who doesn’t love a good child-torturing demon on the holidays?”  _

Kara glared at her laptop, but conceded to place the doll close to the bottom of the tree, holding it with her arm fully extended like it was made of Kryptonite. 

_ “You guys should have done a video of this for your channel,”  _ Kelly piped up.  _ “This is hilarious.” _

“No!” Kara replied. “This is strictly a family thing. There will be plenty of other holiday things to do for the channel. Right, Lena?” 

“Oh, yeah,” Lena said, adjusting the red, glittery garland Kara had wrapped around her like a scarf. “Your Christmas Checklist is still at least two pages long.” 

_ “Hey, Lena? Hey, Lena?” _ Alex teased.  _ “That tree big enough for ya?”  _

“Hmm,” Lena said, considering it as she sat on the arm of the recliner next to it. “I don’t think so. There’s still a whole centimeter of space between the top of the tree and the ceiling.” 

“I told you I measured!” Kara insisted on her tippy-toes as she hung a small lizard with a santa hat ornament closer to the top of the tree. She leaned down to give Lena a kiss, which quickly became more heated than either of them had intended. 

_ “Whoa! What did I say? No zoom call PDA!” _ Alex lamented. 

Kara didn’t pull away immediately, likely just to annoy Alex. When she did, her eyes sparkled with the reflection of the lights she’d hung in on the doorway of the balcony And on the balcony. And on the entertainment center... Lena had insisted on a ‘lights off after midnight’ rule, becuase otherwise it would be too bright in their apartment for her to get any sleep at night. 

But other than that, Lena really couldn’t complain. Kara’s seemingly endless amount of Christmas cheer was becoming infectious. Before Kara, Lena had never thought about the holidays as much more than a time to avoid the bustling stores at all costs. Which was still true, now more than ever. But now that Kara had some activity for them to do almost every day from now until New Year’s, Lena felt herself starting to understand why she liked it so much. Christmas could be fun when it was spent with people you love. Or at least, the  _ person _ you love.

Maybe that’s why Lena felt so merry these days. She didn’t necessarily love the holidays, she loved the holidays when they were with Kara. 

*

“You know, it’s a good thing we can edit these videos after the fact now, becuase otherwise we’d be streaming all day.” 

Kara chuckled, blowing a stray lock of hair away from her eyes so she wouldn’t have to get gingerbread goop on her forehead. Some time during the summer, Cat had decided it might be a better idea for the videos Kara created to not be live all the time, seeing as it seemed to be becoming harder and harder for them to keep the videos pg. Through no fault of their own, of course. And while Lena and Kara had never technically been caught doing anything inappropriate on camera, at the rate they were going, it was only a matter of time. Kara did appreciate the freedom to be able to feel Lena up during filming if she felt so inclined, knowing that she could just cut it out later. 

And she was especially glad that she could cut videos down to fit a certain time parameter now, becuase she had not realized how long it took to make a gingerbread house. Somehow Kara had never made one before, despite having always wanted to, and so now that she was finally going for it, she was going to do it right. So she was going to make everything from scratch. The gingerbread, the icing, the-well she, wasn’t gonna make the gumdrops from scratch becuase the recipe looked  _ really _ hard...but still! Lena had come up with the design for the house (with 3D printed stencils to cut the dough with, and blueprints, and a diorama…) Kara was going to do all the baking, and together they would try their hand at attempting to assemble it. 

Kara pulled a cookie tray out of the oven, filled with half of the walls and the roof panels, and Lena was ready with a knife so she could cut the edges that had swelled from baking back down to the correct size before they had cooled, saving all the trimmings for Kara to snack on, of course. 

“Hey! These are actually pretty good!” Kara mumbled. 

“Really?” 

“Yeah! Here, try some.” 

Lena flinched at the offering of cookie trimmings Kara attempted to offer her. 

“Oh come on! I have gotten better at baking since quarantine started, you can’t even lie.” 

“I know you have. And I have done my best to eat as many of the hundreds of dozens of cookies you have made, all of them delicious. But I can’t help but be wary about a cookie with such an interesting mixture of spices.” 

“I didn’t put a lot of cloves in! Just a little!” 

“Kara, that is what they put in your gums when you get your wisdom teeth removed. I tasted nothing but cloves for a week when I was twenty. It was  _ not _ pleasant.” 

Lena wasn’t going to budge, so Kara had no choice but to pout at Lena until she rolled her eyes and let Kara pop a sliver of cookie into her mouth. 

“Okay, it’s not bad,” Lena conceded. “Think we need to edit out you hand feeding me cookies, though?” 

“Nah. Probably will have to edit this out, though,” Kara said, and pulled Lena in for a kiss, her flour coated hands leaving streaks on Lena’s sweater. It had been a whole five minutes since she’d kissed her, what else was she supposed to do? 

“ _ Kara _ ,” Lena said with fake shock, giggling as she wiped the flour off of her. “You do realize we’re gonna have to do an actual livestream on Christmas Eve, like we agreed with Cat. We’ll have to get out of the habit of editing around your advances by then.” 

“Oh, please, you’re just as bad,” Kara replied, keeping her hands low on Lena’s hips as she pulled her in again. 

“Shouldn’t you put the rest of the gingerbread in the oven?” Lena breathed between familiar, languid kisses. 

“Mmhmm,” Kara said, moving to hoist Lena up on the counter behind her, her hands finding their way beneath Lena’s sweater. 

“Are you planning on making a sex tape?” Lena asked, pulling Kara in as close as possible with her legs. 

“No? Not right now, at least,” Kara murmured. 

“Then we better get back to the cookies soon, or I won’t be able to control myself.” 

“Hmm,” Kara hummed, and then finally pulled away. “Okay! Cookies now, sex later.” 

“Deal,” Lena said, smacking Kara on the ass as she turned back to her bowl of cookie dough, making Kara yelp gleefully. 

“Oh, and one more thing?” 

“Hmm?” 

Kara spun around to give Lena one more quick kiss. 

“I love you.” 

Lena grinned broadly. 

“I love you, too,” she said. 

“Good, then you won’t be mad when I do this,” she said, and smeared a glob of cookie dough onto her nose.

“Hey!” Lena squealed, sticking her pointer finger into the bowl of royal icing to try and get Kara back. 

They spent the next minute or so chasing each other around the kitchen with icing and cookie dough. That part, at least, they wouldn’t have to edit out later. 

*

“I don’t know how confident I am in this icing as a bonding agent,” Kara said, mumbling a bit as a result of resting her chin against the counter top as she held the roof of the gingerbread house together. She’d been stuck like this for at least ten minutes. Every time she tried to let go, one of the roof panels would start to slide off. 

“I suggested several alternatives, but you shot them all down.” 

“Yeah, becuase they were all different kinds of glues. And the whole point of a gingerbread house is that every part of it is edible.” 

“At the expense of your sanity?” Lena asked, grabbing a gumdrop out of the candy dish and tossing it in the air with a large arc so Kara had enough time to tilt her head back and catch it in her mouth. 

“Precisely. Here, pipe some icing between the panels on top here, that might do the trick.” 

“Mkay,” Lena replied, grabbing the makeshift piping bag, a ziploc bag with the bottom corner cut off, and piped a thick line of icing to the top seam of the roof. 

Kara took a minute to examine their work. The roof itself, which Lena had decorated, was beautiful. She’d meticulously piped completely symmetrical shingles onto the whole thing, and adorned it with an alternating pattern of peppermints and green gumdrops. It was like something out of a magazine, honestly. 

Kara’s work, on the other hand, was a lot more haphazard. She’d picked all of the red and green M&M’s and gummy bears out of the candy bowl, and had thrown them on with royal icing glue in whatever pattern she could think of. Because it was fun! And she liked how it had turned out, but she couldn’t help but be a little awestruck at Lena’s exquisite workmanship. 

Lena was good at basically everything. Gingerbread art included. 

Kara held onto the roof a minute longer, and then finally let go, watching it like a hawk to make sure it didn’t slip again. But it stayed put. 

“There! Perfect! I love it,” Kara said, beaming. “Though, I must say, for someone who has never made a gingerbread house before, you seem to really know what you’re doing, Lena.” 

“Well,” Lena said, faltering slightly. “In all honesty, this wasn’t  _ technically _ my first time making a gingerbread house.” 

“What?” Kara said, shocked. “When did-” 

“I just...I really didn’t want to screw this one up! So I kind of...did a trial run before we made this one.” 

“I-When? And where?” 

Lena smiled coyly, and then hit the button on her kitchen island, triggering the floor panel that hid the steps to her wine cellar to pull back. She descended the stairs, shuffling around down there for a moment, and then reappeared with a full blown gingerbread house on an aluminum baking sheet. And it was beautiful. And way more intricate than the one she and Kara had made. In fact, the closer Kara looked at it, the more she realized it resembled, almost exactly, the “Fallingwater” house Frank Lloyd Wright had designed and built. 

“What the...Lena!” Kara exclaimed. “This is freaking beautiful! When did you have time to make this?” 

“When you were, you know, off doing all those food drives and toy drives like the honest to god saint that you are.” 

“But they were all LCorp sponsored events!”

“I know! But there’s a difference between throwing money at something and actually doing it.” 

“Lena!” Kara insisted. “This is...a freaking piece of art. And ours looks like crap compared to it.” 

“Hey! It does not!” Lena replied, coming around the kitchen island to close the distance between the two of them. She was careful not to surge forwards too quickly or touch Kara too closely or intimately, like she knew she wanted this part of the video to stay intact for their viewers. “I love the one we made so much more than this thing,” she said, gesturing to the casual masterpiece she had assembled in her downtime. “You know why?” 

Kara already felt a small smile growing on her lips despite her indignation. 

“Why?” she asked innocently. 

“Becuase  _ we _ made it. Together. I made that one,” she said, pointing at her gingerbread house and laughing. “Hiding in the wine cellar, desperate to figure out what I was doing so that I could make sure that this, now, making a gingerbread house with you, would be perfect. And ours is perfect becuase it’s  _ im _ perfect. Because we made it while we were goofing off and spending time together. Okay? You could toss mine out the window for all I care. I don’t feel anything for it. But I love this one,” she said, eyes full of so much more than she could say with the camera rolling. She wasn’t talking about the gingerbread house anymore. “I  _ love _ it. Yeah?” 

Kara tried not to beam too radiantly, tried as hard as she could to keep from reaching out and pulling Lena in...

No. The general public still had not been clued in to the fact that Kara and Lena were together. If anyone had drawn their own conclusions, that was on them. But officially? Lena and Kara were still just “very good friends”. Kara felt conflicted about this, at times. Since that day on their rooftop, she’d wanted to all but pay a blimp to project “KARA <3’s LENA” all over National City just to prove to everyone that this was  _ real _ . That this was everything Kara had ever wanted, and more. That she  _ loved _ Lena, and she would never stop saying it, as long as she lived. But Lena was also right, when she pointed out that, in some way, it was better this way. It was better to keep their love behind closed doors for now, to be appreciated only by each other and the ones they loved. Becuase displaying it for everyone to see just tarnished it. Just took away from the fact that they fell in love and grew in love in complete privacy, despite the complete public domain of both their names: A Luthor And a Super. Their love was something that would be so sensational and headline catching and world changing. But they’d achieved it on their own, in quiet moments together, away from the drama and the cameras and the grandiose world saving. Their love existed despite the attention, the adoration, the prying eyes. Alone was when they were at their best and their purest. And it was where they felt more connected than ever. And that was what Lena wanted to hold onto, as long as possible. And in moments like this? When they were teasingly smearing royal icing on each other’s faces as they fought past the urge to pull each other close in the view of a prying camera? That was when Kara loved her more than anything. And that was where she wanted to stay. 

“Yeah. Okay,” Kara murmured. “I can’t believe you made a test run gingerbread house without me.” 

“I am a scientist! I believe in being thorough! You forget that I used to play boardgames alone to prep for game nights with our friends.” 

Kara burst into a cackling giggle. 

“Yeah. James told me about that.” 

“Shut up,” Lena said, giggling in tandem with her girlfriend. 

“So can we do what I suggested?” Lena said after the laughter had finally died down. 

“What’s that?” 

“Throw the other gingerbread house out the window?”

“What?! No! It’s too pretty!” 

“But I really wanna see it go ‘splat’!” Lena insisted.

“Uh uh. Nope. We’ll just have to make something else go ‘splat’, if you insist on being destructive.” 

Lena arched an eyebrow approvingly at Kara as she considered what she had said. 

Fifteen or so minutes later, Kara took a haphazard lump of leftover gingerbread pieces and icing, finished with a generous smattering of leftover candy on top, out and onto the roof of their apartment building. Once they had checked that the coast was clear, Kara held her cell phone in her teeth to document the moment as best she could while making a drumroll with her hands thrumming against the concrete ledge, as Lena tipped the monstrosity over the edge and let it fall down, down, down, until it indeed went “splat” against the pavement below. It was, actually, just as satisfying as Kara had hoped it would be. Lena seemed elated by the sugary carnage, turning to Kara and her camera and yelling “Merry Splatmas!” as she jumped up and down with glee. 

Kara made a mental note to add this to her list of yearly holiday traditions, along with promptly taking an elevator downstairs and collecting up the carnage to properly dispose of it. 

Lena was still giggling like an idiot when Kara finally turned off the camera, promising herself that she would edit and post the video sometime before she went to sleep. 

“I fucking love you,” Lena said between giggles. 

“Same,” Kara replied, cracking up from the effect of Lena’s infectious laughter up until she kissed her over and over and over. 

*

Lena came home from work just as soon as she could, not wanting to be late for their video call with the Danvers for this evening’s candle lighting. Besides, there were only so many hours of overtime she could handle when she had to have a mask on at all times. She definitely missed the days of being able to work from home. But the CEO could only hide out in solitude for so long before the whole company fell apart. 

She was greeted with the usual “Christmas threw up in our apartment” scene when she came home. The lights, the tree, the garland, the paper snowflakes hanging from the ceiling (Kara had taken the movie “Elf” as a sort of inspiration in the decoration department) but no Kara. Which was strange. She was usually beebopping around the kitchen making yet another batch of cookies by now, with flour sprinkled around the kitchen like snow. Had Kara gone out to grab more baking supplies? Was she trying to hide all the packages that kept showing up at the door? (Despite Lena insisting that she needed to _stop_ buying her presents, it was _too_ _much_.) But Lena could hear music, so she had to assume she was around here _somewhere_.

_ “Have yourself a merry little Christmas” _ , Judy Garland sang from the bluetooth speaker on the kitchen counter.

“Kara? Are you home?” Lena called out. 

There was no answer, but she thought she heard something like a sniffle from the kitchen. Lena’s heart sunk. 

_ “Next year all our troubles will be miles away…” _

Lena found Kara sitting on the floor, leaning up against the oven door, face buried in her hands, her shoulders shaking as she cried quietly. 

“Oh, honey,” Lena breathed, rushing to plop down on the floor next to Kara, pulling her into her lap and stroking her hair soothingly, feeling tears well up in her own eyes in response to seeing her girlfriend broken down like this. Lena knew it was coming. She knew that all this grandiose holiday cheer was Kara’s way of keeping her grief at bay as they spent yet another month away from her family and their friends, the weight of the world slowly crushing her as it seemed like they were in some fucked up version of the Groundhog Day movie, like they were back in April all over again. 

_ “Someday soon we all will be together, _

_ If the fates allow _

_ Until then, we’ll have to muddle through somehow…” _

“Judy Garland struck a nerve, huh?” Lena asked softly. 

Kara nodded into Lena’s neck. 

“Okay,” Lena breathed, hugging Kara tightly and letting her cry for a little while, until the song ended, until the heaving in her chest started to settle. 

“I just wanted to listen to some Christmas music while I made cookies,” Kara croaked helplessly. 

“I know, love,” Lena soothed, continuing to stroke her hair, her lips pressed against Kara’s forehead reassuringly. “You want me to call Eliza and tell her to wait a little while before they light the candles tonight?” 

Kara shook her head. 

“No,” she said, lifting her head up from where it hid in Lena’s hair and wiping her eyes. “I’m okay.” 

“You sure?” 

“Yeah,” Kara said with a calming breath, pulling herself out of Lena’s lap. “Yeah. I’ll be fine.” 

Lena helped her up, keeping an arm wrapped around her waist, wishing she could do more to brighten Kara’s spirits. She settled on pulling Kara against her, hugging her as tightly as she could, unknowingly beginning to sway to the music as the playlist moved on to Eartha Kitt’s “Santa Baby”, thankfully more upbeat than the last song. 

“I love you,” Kara murmured. 

“I love  _ you _ ,” Lena insisted softly. 

A little while later, Kara stayed firmly snuggled up against Lena as they sat on the couch, the laptop sitting in front of them on the coffee table, as the Danvers got together on a video call for another night of Eliza lighting candles on the family Menorah. Alex and Eliza both seemed to know without having to ask that Kara wasn’t having the best day, but they did their best to joke around and brighten up her spirits from their own homes when the call had began, far too far away from Lena and Kara’s apartment to give her the quality time she truly craved. 

“Alright, I’ll call you girls tomorrow. And let me know when your gifts show up in the mail!” 

“We will, love you, Mom,” Alex said. 

“Love you, Alex,” Eliza said. “Love you, Kara. Oh, and Lena?” 

“Hmm?” Lena asked, having settled into a comfortable silence as she listened to the Danvers’ girls fall into their usual banter over the course of the call. 

“I’m glad Kara has you to keep her company.” 

Lena smiled shyly, Kara squeezing her tighter in response. 

“Me, too,” Lena replied. “Goodnight, Mrs. Danvers.”

“Oh, start calling me Eliza, for goodness sake.” 

Lena laughed. 

“Noted.” 

They ended the call, and a stiff silence fell over the apartment. Lena couldn’t stand it. 

“You want me to try and make those fried potato pancake things Alex always makes?” 

“ _ Yes _ ,” Kara insisted emphatically, and rushed to the kitchen.

*

“Merry Almost Christmas!” Kara said cheerfully to the camera. “Sheesh, it has been forever since we’ve done an actual livestream. I miss you guys! It’s just not the same reading comments after the fact.” 

“I dunno, being able to moderate what people say a bit more closely has its perks,” Lena said with a wink to the camera. 

“Oh, they’re fine. Anyway! Uh, what are we doing for this video? How have I forgotten already?” 

“We’re not singing carols, are we? Please say no,” Lena lamented.

“Well that’s what I  _ wanted _ to do. But  _ somebody _ is convinced they don’t have a good singing voice.” 

“Kara, nobody wants to hear me sing. Trust me.” 

“I like hearing you sing.” 

Lena balked. 

“When do I ever sing?” she asked.

“Oh, like you don’t have a full karaoke session in the shower every morning.” 

“I...I did not know you could hear that.” 

“I can,” Kara said with a smug grin.

“Well  _ shit _ ,” Lena said with a chuckle.

_ “Y’all are so domestic I CANNOT,” _ one comment read.

_ “I am fkin dying to know what you guys got each other for Christmas,”  _ another one said.

“Oh! That was it! We were gonna open presents!” 

“No! That’s for tomorrow morning,” Lena insisted.

“Please, Lena? Just one each?” 

Lena narrowed her eyes at Kara.

“Ugh, fine.”

“Yes,” Kara replied, leaping off the couch and towards the tree, where a ridiculous stack of presents had formed. Apparently, buying each other presents had become a contest to Lena, and Kara. And though Kara didn’t have nearly the same budget as her girlfriend, she would not be outdone as far the number of gifts was concerned. 

Kara stared down at the “Lena” pile, trying to remember what was in each box so she could pick one of the “smaller” and “viewer appropriate” gifts to have her open. Really, there were only a couple of racy gifts, but they were definitely not something to be opened up in front of an audience. Especially an audience who was still supposed to believe that Kara and Lena were just friends. 

She picked up one of the bigger boxes, and it was light, so she was able to remember by its weight alone what was inside. It was  _ perfect _ . 

“Heads up!” Kara said, tossing the box in Lena’s direction, who yelped and was barely able to catch it before it smacked her.

“Open it, open it, open it!” Kara chanted excitedly, hopping down onto the couch from behind. 

“Jesus, no more hot chocolate for you,” Lena laughed.

“Don’t you dare take my hot chocolate, woman,” Kara replied, grabbing her mug possessively. 

Lena shook her head, and tore into the wrapping paper. Contained inside was something Lena had seen in a department store at least a year ago when they had been killing time looking for a dress for Kara for a gala they were both supposed to go to (even though they both knew damn well she would just end up borrowing something of Lena’s). It was a neon green dinosaur hooded onesie Lena had been absolutely tickled by, wondering why in the hell a grown adult would wear such a thing, but also seeming like she secretly would love to wear something so ridiculous. 

“Oh my god,” Lena exclaimed as she pulled the onesie out of the box. “No you did  _ not _ . Are you serious right now?”

“Do you like it?” Kara asked expectantly. 

“Uh.  _ Yeah _ I do,” Lena replied emphatically. “I just cannot believe the coincidence.” 

“What do you mean?” Kara asked. 

Lena got up, made her way to the tree, and picked out a box, tossing it in Kara’s direction. Kara opened it, and inside was a pastel rainbow unicorn onesie. 

“Ahhh!” Kara squealed, kicking her feet against the couch in her excitement and throwing the box out of her way so she could hold it up. “I love it!” 

_ “These two dorks really out there buying each other onesies I’M OBSESSED,”  _ a comment read. 

“We’re putting these on,” Kara insisted.

“Right now?” Lena asked.

“Yes right now! Go go go!” Kara said, hopping off the couch, unicorn onesie in hand. “Be back in a minute, gang!” 

And sure enough, they spent the rest of the livestream in their onesies, drinking hot chocolate and reading the comments out loud as they asked their viewers to share with them their favorite holiday traditions. And, despite the circumstances, Kara couldn’t have asked for a better way to spend her Christmas Eve. That was until, they finally said goodnight to their viewers and ended the livestream, and Kara all but pounced on Lena. 

“Kara!” Lena squealed as she was pinned into the couch, giggling. “There is no way you want to fuck a girl wearing a onesie!” 

“Oh you bet your ass I do,” Kara replied between kisses. “Why, don’t you find me attractive right now?” She asked, sitting up and putting her hands on her fluffy fleece covered hips like a challenge. 

Lena narrowed her eyes at Kara for a moment. 

“Oh goddammit,” Lena conceded, and pulled Kara back down on top of her. 

“Does this count as opening two presents?” Kara murmured against Lena’s mouth, sliding down the zipper on the front of Lena’s outfit. 

“Kara for fuck’s sake,” Lena said with a giggle. “I am dating a  _ dork _ .” 

“Said the girl in the dinosaur onesie who’s about to get fucked by a girl in a unicorn onesie.” 

*

Kara had always wanted a Christmas morning worthy of a Hallmark movie. However, there was no chance of there being any snow outside, everyone was in lockdown, and she’d used up so much flour making cookies that she was sure they didn’t have enough left to make waffles on Christmas morning like she had planned. But then Kara woke up, bleary eyed as the sunrise shone in through the window, Lena’s arm slung unconsciously over her bare stomach, their ridiculous onesies tossed aside somewhere on the floor. And she stared at Lena, wondering where the time had gone, wondering how they had gone from friends to this in just a few months. And then Lena slowly opened her eyes, her gaze locked on Kara’s, and she smiled sleepily as she murmured “Merry Christmas, Kara”. 

And in that moment, despite everything, it was already the best Christmas Kara had ever had. 

“Race you to the presents,” Kara said, and leapt out of bed, despite all of Lena’s pleading for coffee first. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ICYMI I posted 2 chapters at once, chapter 13 is a VERY brief smut scene that takes place after chapter 12 so if you were looking forward to that make sure you give it a look 😇
> 
> I wrote this like 2 weeks ago and wanted to get it posted before THE EVENING OF FKIN CHRISTMAS EVE but here we are. I got busy, sorry fam. Anyway hope you enjoyed a little holiday fluff, and happy holidays and a MERRY CRISIS to everyone!!!! (PS the judy garland meltdown scene was based on real events, ya girl is havin a rough fkin time lolllll) Share your fave holiday traditions in the comments, I would love to hear them <3\. 
> 
> Love yinz,  
> Tess


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